Lord of Steel
by Darien Fawkes
Summary: The end is coming for the Ninja Steel Rangers, as their enemies grow ever more determined to take the Prism and the Ninja Steel from them. However, they are well aware that the most powerful foe is yet to make his final move, and it will undoubtedly take more than just them to save the world in this final showdown.
1. Chapter 1

**LEGAL:** I do not own Power Rangers, or the associated names, characters, places, events etc. Anything not covered by the above rights is to be presumed to be purely the creation of the author.

**RATING:** T – may be some mild adult themes including language, violence and adult references.

**A/N:** Well, here it is, a new story, and one that I fully intend to be the one that brings my Ninja Steel arc to a close. I hope you enjoy it. Just to let you know, Beast Morphers has started in the UK, a season I love by the way, and I fully intend to get started on it when I finish up with Ninja Steel. But, since it's taking a while, I do have another little taster to some of the concepts and ideas I have for when I finally do get around to it. Hope you enjoy.

Summer Cove had a surprising, but not unwelcome break from attacks after the Foxatron attack. While the Rangers had found themselves taking a train ride across dimensions to take care of a warlord that had kidnapped former Rangers in the attempt to create an army to destroy their universe, others had been rebuilding and enjoying what was, for the most part, the longest break between monster attacks any of them had seen since Galvanax was destroyed.

No one suspected for a moment that everything was over, the Warrior Dome ship was still in orbit, sometimes even being visible from Earth on a clear night if the light pollution was low enough, and so they knew better than to assume it was over.

The city now had a brief respite to concentrate on some of its other problems. Sadly, even when monsters attacked, the usual issues still continued to surface in a city. Crime, people left homeless, poverty. It was a sad fact that occasionally some of these things ended up on the back burner in the presence of the more immediate threat of psychotic alien monsters with highly powerful and dangerous weapons. The Rangers had some of their own problems that they'd needed to put on hold too, but now they were starting to get some time to focus on. At least, the ones that wanted to focus on those problems did.

Levi, Brody and Emma had a slightly awkward time that weekend with Dane, struggling to find anything to talk about. There wasn't really an easy way to find an ice-breaker for their rather complicated family situation. They had all agreed to meet up as a family the following weekend for a day out. He'd even invited Mick and Tom along. Emma was already looking forward to the end of the week. That said, they weren't the only ones that had an issue brewing at home that they wanted to avoid.

"Alright Sandy, here I come again!" Brody called out as he rushed towards her. Unusually for the training yard, they were both morphed. Normally they tried to avoid anything Ranger related in or near the school, but Mick and Redbot had been careful to ensure access to the yard had been carefully sealed off. Mick had put up signs warning students he was taking inventory of his tools and parts and that access to the shop class and the yard was restricted. Normally if they were going to work on anything that required them to be morphed, they would wait until they could get somewhere quiet, with lots of space in case of anything going wrong, but they had the mystery of Sandy's newfound ability. When battling Draven, she had somehow unleashed a previously unknown attack that had repelled him with green lightning. No one, least of all Sandy, had any idea how she had done it. Brody was hoping that they could jar her into doing it again. Sandy barely managed to get her sword in the way, before his sword slammed into her, knocking her off her feet. Hayley's cell phone rang as Sandy started to get up.

"What the hell was that?" Sandy complained as she got up.

"I warned you I was coming…" He started to say, before Sandy started tapping her helmet. "Oh…right…um…sorry."

He'd forgotten about the issue of the helmet. Sandy was deaf, and normally functioned by reading lips, something she couldn't do while the others were wearing their helmets. She'd taught the Rangers some sign language so that they could pass along instructions to her while she was morphed, but there were still a few moments when mistakes were made. She hadn't been a Ranger especially long and so it hadn't yet become habit to signal to her.

"Hey, was that your mom?" Calvin whispered to Hayley as she put her phone away. Although Hayley had skipped out on the meeting with the others regarding the Drakkon situation to look after Maxie when the news broke that Trevor had been released, she had since met up with Calvin and explained.

Trevor Marx was her step-father. He was also, for a time, the unwitting host to the Psycho Green Ranger. He had been taken in by Promethea after the Rangers destroyed Psycho Green for treatment. During their battles, Psycho Green had targeted Aaron and Maxie, and in the process Maxie had been seriously hurt. Although he wasn't really in control of Psycho Green at the time, the fact he was returning to town had caused her a few mixed feelings to say the least. Hayley had no desire to pick sides between her parents. One of the best things about her family had been that even when her mom and her dad realised that their relationship simply did not work was that all of them managed to come through it very positively. Hayley just nodded. "Don't you think you should at least answer it?"

"And say what Cal?" She asked him. "Mom's already called me about this a couple of times, it's not like there's much else I can do."

"Look, I can't begin to claim I know what you're feeling about this…"

"It's got nothing to do with what I'm feeling. I'm going to theirs this afternoon, it's just…" She said, tailing off. "Trevor has a meeting with the chief today."

"Well, that's…not bad is it?" Calvin asked her. She just looked at him witheringly. "Yeah, that could be bad."

"If I hadn't told mom I was at a crucial part of my study regime she'd have insisted I skip school and be down there for moral support." She told him sadly. "I think we all know his meeting's likely to be to give him his pink slip."

"I guess we can't say we didn't see that coming." Calvin agreed sadly. The fact was that Trevor's identity as the Psycho Green Ranger had been revealed in one of his final battles. The public now knew that Trevor had been inside the armour, and even though Grace had done what she could to assure everyone that he wasn't in control and keep him from serving a very long time in prison, that didn't mean to say the public at large were going to be quite so forgiving. The Police Department had received a huge Public Relations problem to deal with, one that was going to be most easily remedied by distancing themselves from Trevor. Before he could finish, there was a yell and they all looked up to see Sandy lying on the ground again.

"DUDE!" She yelled.

"I'm sorry, it's just…the last time you used that attack it was when Draven startled you." Brody reasoned with her. "I thought maybe if I surprised you…"

Sandy just made a hand signal towards him. He didn't understand specifically what it meant, but he could tell by context it was not something meant for polite conversation. Preston and Mick helped her up as she de-morphed.

"Yeah, well, maybe we should take a break for now. The bell is about to go so you should probably go and get showered and changed." Mick suggested. "Sandy, would you mind lending me your Power Star?"

"My Power Star?" She asked. "What for? I thought we were meant to keep them on us."

"I just want to run a few tests on it." He told her. "It won't leave the lab, you'll have it back before you leave, and if you need it, it'll be right here!"

"OK then." She answered, rubbing the back of her neck.

"You alright?" Preston asked. "You want me to look at…?"

"I'll be fine Preston." She assured him. "Presuming I survive double maths with Mrs Finch!"

"Oh, I don't think it'll be that difficult." Levi said. "Let's just say she should probably be in a good mood."

"That is a visual I really didn't need!" Emma said with a shudder as they all started to leave. Redbot came over to Mick as he inspected Sandy's Power Star.

"Why did you want to see her Power Star?" Redbot asked him.

"I'm not sure, it's probably nothing." Mick said, looking at it thoughtfully. "I'm just going to be in the lab."

Over at Summer Cove Police Department, Hayley's mom, Laura, was sitting with Trevor, waiting for the meeting with Captain Peralta. She looked disappointed as she saw that Hayley had once again silenced her phone. This was the last chance for her to be there, if she wasn't answering now then she wasn't coming.

"You can't blame her." Trevor said gently. "She has her own priorities right now."

"Her priority should be to her family." Laura replied as she put her phone away.

"It's an important time for her. I wouldn't want her to risk missing anything if she didn't have to." He told her. "I mean, what was she going to do if she was here? Hand me my blindfold and cigarette?"

"I really wish you wouldn't talk like that." Laura responded. "You've done a lot of good in this city. There are a whole bunch of people who would likely have been in prison if not for you." Trevor just looked to her, but she rolled her eyes.

"You know what I mean." She muttered. Trevor believed very heavily in community policing. While some believed in just enforcing the law, he was one of the ones that believed that the best way forward and to break the cycle in some areas and in some people's lives of the prison system was to foster a relationship between the police and the community, to be seen as friends and people they could trust rather than people who hauled their friends and loved ones away. He spent a lot of time in neighbourhoods others just passed through to collect on warrants, playing basketball, recommending safe places for people to spend time…hell, he'd spent a whole day helping Mrs Anderson plant her rose bush, but as a result he was one of the few cops that people in those areas would even talk to.

"Laura, I think we have to face facts, or…at very least face the worst case scenario." He told her. "There are a lot of people in this city who don't want me back at all. They think I should be in prison…"

"And they'd have me to deal with if they dared to say that to your face." She assured him.

"I appreciate it, but…" Just then, the door opened and Ellie, Sarah's mom, peered out.

"He's ready for you now." She told them. They both got up and went inside, where Captain Peralta was sitting with the Commissioner and the department's lawyer. Ellie had a smaller desk off to the side with a computer for her to type on as the meeting went ahead. Although it was only the Captain's office, somewhere they'd been a few times, the whole setup looked a lot like a trial.

"Officer Marx, please be seated." Captain Peralta beckoned him as they got inside. They both took a seat while he checked some notes. "Mrs Thompson is here to take minutes. Alright, is there anything you'd like to say before we begin?"

"Yes, there is." Trevor said before looking to the panel before him. "I can't remember a time I didn't want to be a cop. When I signed up to the forces, I went into law enforcement. I've always believed in justice and in the law. Not because I want to punish people…if we lived in an ideal world we wouldn't need to punish anyone. But we don't live in an ideal world, and there are certain rules that have to be followed and people who won't follow them. When I came home, it was only natural for me to want to continue. It's the only thing I know, the only thing I've ever wanted to do. I know that I've done a lot of bad things, and I know that I can't take back a lot of what happened, but I want you to know that whatever you decide here today, no matter what your decision, I consider it an honour and a privilege to have served with this department."

"Officer Marx, as you know police departments all across the country have very real problems with community relations. There are a number of incidents that have caused a lot of the public to view the police in a less than favourable light." The Commissioner told stated. "It's an unfortunate fact, but we need to push as much as possible for the image of law enforcement being something people can trust."

"Officer Marx, you have been an exemplerary officer in the time I've known you." Captain Peralta complimented him. "I have numerous commendations and letters of glowing praise from members of the community you have helped. You were always one of the first to volunteer for any outreach programs and I cannot count the number of members of the public that have called my office singing your praises. Mrs Anderson, there's virtually not a day goes by she doesn't give me an update about her rose garden. However, regardless of your previous good character we have to acknowledge that what happened has tarnished the department in a way we simply can't ignore."

"But you all read the report, he wasn't responsible!" Laura protested. "He didn't cause any of that damage! Psycho Green did! He wasn't in control, the courts even said so!"

"Mrs Marx…"

"Hell, he didn't even NEED to go to trial! If he'd just gone with Sterling's report he'd never have faced a jury, but he did anyway because he believes so much in the system he wanted people to get the chance to have their say!" She continued to protest.

"That may be the case, but your actions and your behaviour have caused serious doubt in a population that is already justifiably terrified!" Captain Peralta stated.

"Officer Marx, what are the three most important things an officer must do at all times?" The Commissioner asked him.

"Observe the public trust, protect the innocent and uphold the law." He recanted.

"You have violated all three of those tenants with your actions. Even if you were not responsible for what Psycho Green did, by failing to act and report what was going on, you allowed it to happen." Captain Peralta responded. "Which is why, after consultation with legal counsel and the Commissioner, I'm afraid we have no alternative but to terminate your service. We can only hope that by doing so we can begin to repair some of the harm you have done to the trust in this department."

"I…I understand." Trevor said sadly, looking out his identification looking at it as his heart broke. It was true, being a police officer was the only thing he'd ever wanted to do. He couldn't imagine anything else he would want to do. Giving it up was like giving up a piece of himself, but he'd been a cop long enough to know that the department was more than any one person, and if he had harmed it, then he had a responsibility to do whatever it took to try and salve those wounds. He put the identification down on the desk, sliding it to them.

"We'll arrange for your uniforms and any department issued equipment to be collected." The Commissioner told him, before buzzing the intercom. "I'll just have an officer escort you out."

Spike came in the door. He looked regretfully to Trevor and Laura. He was a friend, he didn't want to be a part of this, but it was pretty much inevitable that Trevor was going to be cut loose. Spike had actually volunteered to be there to escort him out because he at least wanted him to have at least one friendly face at this time. Trevor got up and turned to leave.

"Officer Marx!" Captain Peralta called after him. Trevor stopped in the doorway. "For what it's worth…I wish you well in the future."

"Thanks." Trevor said half-heartedly before leaving the department one last time.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Badonna was enjoying the trappings of her new position. With Odious gone, she had now taken over not only the Warrior Dome ship, but the entirety of the Warrior Dome operation.

She had instituted some drastic changes on the ship. There were a lot of renovations going on throughout the ship, in particular to the accommodations. The crew were delighted to finally be working for a more benevolent boss. Both Galvanax and Odious had been cruel and had little care for the slaves on the ship. In truth, Badonna didn't either, but she didn't see the point in being unnecessarily cruel. All that did was encourage people to seek to sabotage the operations. Ultimately Galvanax had been brought down by Odious betraying him when he became more trouble than he was worth. Odious had ultimately been destroyed when Cosmo got the chance to destroy her for hampering his show. Even the Rangers had been created completely inadvertently when Wrench helped Mick and Brody escape the ship to get a better position for himself on the Warrior Dome crew.

She was sitting in her chambers, sipping some tea when the viewing screen came on.

"I see you're enjoying the trappings of your new position." Lord Drakkon stated. Drakkon had been behind all of the most recent developments. Badonna had been little more than a slave to Draven, and he had seen her desire to free herself as a way to get her to convince Draven to seek out Odious and help him with his plans. While he was sure Draven would ultimately see him as nothing more than another strong opponent to face eventually, his ambition and drive did yield positive results. Although the Rangers had stopped him breaking free from the Anti-Verse, he had managed to weaken the dimensional barriers to their weakest point in years. Soon, it would be his time to conquer.

"There are some benefits to leadership, that is true." Badonna told him as a kudabot came to her, carrying a tray of biscuits. She took a little moment to try and decide which one she wanted, picking out a custard cream. "But not just for myself. I've listened to what you taught me. If you oppress those beneath you too much, you just encourage insurrection. I've started to improve things for the interns…"

"That is all well and good, but I still have a few things I need to do here." Drakkon told her. "I just want to know you've got a plan in place to deal with the Rangers."

Just then, the communicator bleeped. Cosmo appeared on another screen.

"Badonna, I thought you should know, your very special guest has arrived." Cosmo told her. She snapped up from her throne so quickly that she scattered the tea and the biscuits on the floor.

"He is? That was TODAY?" She shrieked, immediately starting to reach for her hair and dusting down her clothes. "I was sure it was…I have to get ready…have him taken to the Executive Lounge and give him whatever he wants! I'll be along as soon as I can!"

"Company?" Drakkon asked her, noting her reaction. She just started to flush.

"Um…well…uh…it is…my latest warrior." She stammered. "He is a powerful and…"

"Just get on with it." Drakkon snapped. "Don't disappoint me. You know what happens when people disappoint me."

With that, he cut off the communications link. Badonna suddenly looked to the kudabots.

"All of you! Help me get ready!" She screamed. "I can't let Brax see me like this!"

**A/N:** Well, without further ado, here is my second sneak-peek of some of my concepts for Beast Morphers.

Roxy hadn't quite managed to go to sleep, being shaken awake slightly by movement on the other side of the bed. She smiled a little seeing Ravi sitting on the edge of the bed, starting to get dressed.

"You know, when some people sleep with their partner, they actually get to sleep with them." Roxy mused as she reached out, gently stroking his back.

"Some people don't have so much to do in the day." Ravi responded. "Have you seen my socks?"

"Oh Ravi, all work and no play." She said, pouting a little. "Don't you think it'd be nice, just once, to actually wake up next to each other?"

"Roxy, we both have that level four procedure exam today, I have study to do." He told her. "Not to mention my run, and I've booked time in the target range and…Damn it Roxy, I'm serious, have you seen my socks?"

"Maybe we can find them after breakfast?" She suggested.

"Roxy, I'm not kidding!" He said, getting up as he pulled on his trousers.

"Well, neither am I Ravi." She said, looking a little dejected. Ravi did feel badly about the clandestine nature of their relationship. It wasn't as though he was ashamed of Roxy, though he did fear that she felt like that at times. He just knew that fraternising between staff in the base was frowned upon at the best of times. They weren't even fond of people between departments dating, never mind anything else.

Roxy was one of the most wonderful, warm, funny and beautiful people he had ever met in his life. The moment they met it was like being hit by a truck. In truth it was only a bicycle, but even despite the severe sprain, when she helped him back to the car, he fell for her in a way that he thought only existed in fiction. He could hardly believe it when he saw her at the base, not even realising they had worked together for months without either of them realising it. They had both been in separate groups in the early stages of the Ranger testing programme, and it was only late into the selection progress as the numbers got whittled down enough to assemble the remaining cadets into one group that they even met on the base.

He could see the look in her eyes and his heart broke a little. He reached across, cupping her cheek in his hand.

"I'm sorry Roxy, there's nothing I'd love more than to stay." He told her. "But you know how intense things are getting now. Literally any of the cadets could be cut at any time now. We have to be at our best at all times."

"I know, it'd be such a tragedy if you got an A- instead of an A+." She remarked sarcastically. He leaned across, kissing her softly.

"We'll make time to be together soon." He told her. "I promise."

"Over on the dresser." She said, pointing. Ravi looked behind him and laughed a little, seeing his errant sock. He went across, pulling it on before retrieving his t-shirt. He pulled out his phone, which he used to hack one of the security cameras out in the hall to make sure he wouldn't be seen when he left. He took his opportunity and slipped out, heading down the hall towards his own dorm. He was almost there when he found Blaze stretching off in the hallway.

"So, Ravi, fun night?" He asked him.

"Just an early morning run." Ravi responded. Blaze just smirked.

"Really?" He asked, before reaching to his shirt, pulling one of the exposed seams. "You often run around in clothes that are inside out?"

Ravi just rolled his eyes.

"I know it's a lot to ask Blaze, but just for once, could you not be an asshole?" He asked, before heading into his dorm. Blaze just snorted.

"Wow, I don't know whose bed you rolled out of but try getting out the other side in future." He chuckled to himself, before beginning his run.

After a few hours' sleep, Roxy came out of the shower and was getting dressed when she heard some sound from the kitchen area of her dorm. She headed in, finding her room-mate Zoey sitting, yawning loudly as she poured herself some coffee.

"You're starting early." Roxy commented.

"Well, unfortunately there are no such things as magical pixies that provide you all with clean, pressed uniforms so some of us have to get up early." She responded. Roxy checked her watch.

"It's only…"

"Yes, and I have a full shift in the laundry before the Level 4 Procedure test." She commented. "Of course maybe I'd have had a little more sleep if you hadn't had Ravi over."

"Oh, did we…?" Zoey just nodded.

"These walls aren't exactly thick, and you two are not quiet." Zoey assured her. "Hence the coffee. Don't worry, there's enough in the packet for another pot."

"Sorry." Roxy said, sucking her teeth. "It's just…you know…hard for us to make time for each other…"

"Oh, don't I know it!" She responded. "I don't think I've even met Ravi face to face and somehow I think I know him more intimately than his physician."

"Oh God." Roxy responded. "We…really are that loud?"

"Let's put it this way, if the mental images didn't keep me up, the noise definitely did." Zoey replied, downing the last of her coffee. "Anyway, I have to go. I'll see you at the test."

"Alright, just remember, it's four o'clock!" Roxy reminded her.

"I've got it ingrained into my memory…even if there's a lot of stuff in there now I really wish wasn't!" Zoey teased her.

"Don't forget to wind your watch!" Zoey called out as Zoey left the room, closing the door behind her. She just let out a sigh. She really didn't mean to inconvenience Zoey and make things harder than they needed to be. Most of the cadets were lucky enough to be supported by their parents but Zoey's family couldn't really cover much of her expenses. She was working full-time in the laundry as well as studying for her Ranger tests, something that was already leaving her spread thin.

She opened another pack of coffee and put it in the coffee maker, turning it on, before pulling a couple of packets of toaster pockets out of the cupboard.

"So, is today a strawberry day or an apple day?" She asked herself. She just shrugged, before tearing open one of each packet and popping them into the toaster, pressing down the button.


	2. Trial Test

After a quick shower and changing, Sarah went to stop by her locker to pick up her books for math class. Maths was always one of her best subjects. When all was said and done, the foundations of virtually any branch of science and engineering was mathematics. Physics could very accurately be described as little more than applied mathematics. While some people did find it a little dull at times, Sarah just loved maths, because she was always able to be imaginative and create her own little stories to provide a context to it. For instance, once when she was asked to figure out the trajectory of a pendulum swing, she imagined a scene from Spider-Man. The pendulum suddenly seemed a lot more important when she imagined Peter Parker going splat if he got his calculations a little off.

She was interrupted as Victor came to his locker next to hers. She didn't see him at first, she had her face in the locker, but she could smell his aftershave. It was very distinctive; one thing that Victor did not skimp on was his cosmetics. She bit her lip as the scent came to her. She was inwardly hoping that he wouldn't notice...

"Hey, psst...Sarah." He whispered.

"Shit." She thought. He'd noticed her. She didn't dislike Victor, not anymore. He was a little thoughtless, and he was never going to win any prizes as the smartest person in virtually any room he had to inhabit, but he had shown her over time that there was a lot more to him than the bombastic, arrogant, air-headed moron that she met on her first day of school. He'd been part of Ranger battles before and had helped them out a couple of times in his own way. He'd found out about their identities during the last battle with Galvanax, and had kept that secret ever since. Her problem wasn't the fact that she didn't like him. Now, her problem was that she liked him a little too much. Some wild fantasies and decidedly not PG13 dreams had caused her to lose more than a little focus at a time she really didn't need it.

"Victor." She replied weakly, hoping that he'd just leave it at a greeting and go. She didn't want to have to deal with him right now.

"Sarah, can...can I talk to you for a minute?" He asked her.

"Shit." She thought again. She took a deep breath, forced a friendly smile on her face and closed the locker door.

"Victor, how can I help...?" She started to ask, before seeing him holding a plastic bag in one of his hands. It looked like a costume of some description, and looking through it she could see a blue shirt with some shoulder decorations and a badge. "It's a little early for Halloween isn't it?"

"This?" He asked. "That's not what I wanted to talk about. Well, it's connected but it's not EXACTLY what...?"

"Victor, we're due in math class, can you get to the point please?" Sarah asked him. She inwardly wanted to kick herself. That sounded a little desperate, she didn't want to give Victor the idea she wanted to run as fast as she could, presuming her legs would let her move away from him. Fortunately it seemed like Victor didn't seem to notice, then again he was a little dense.

'Yeah, that's it Sarah, concentrate on his bad points'. She thought to herself. Victor ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath.

"I was wondering...if you'd tutor me a little." He told her. "I know it's late in the day, but I've been really thinking about what I want to do after school and if I can get my GPA up a couple of points, that would be good."

Victor was never going to win any prizes for being the greatest students, but he was a solid B student already.

"You're doing OK aren't you?" She asked him.

"Well, yeah I'm doing OK but..." He started looking around and gestured her in closer. "All this, what you guys do, it's all got me really thinking...I want to do that too. I want to help people."

'Well, you'd look great in the Spandex.'. Sarah thought to herself. She clutched her books a little tighter, digging them into herself to try and get her mind from the thoughts of seeing Victor in tight, form-fitting... 'What the hell is wrong with you?'

"You want to do what we do?" She asked. "I'm...not sure it's something you just choose."

"No, not exactly but, I thought about it and I really like when I get to do my bit to help. It makes me feel great when I do something for someone other than myself." He told her, showing her some print-outs. "I'm thinking of signing up to the Police Academy."

"The Police Academy? You want to become a cop?" She asked him. He just nodded. "I'm...pretty sure you have good enough grades already. Not to mention you'll probably ace the physical portion and..."

"I know, but I don't want to be just a cop. I want to be the best cop!" He explained. "The uniform is a security uniform. Monty and I signed up as student deputies to Clint. I figured between this and my extra-curricular activities, it'd all boost my application."

"It...couldn't hurt." Sarah said as she started to imagine Victor in the uniform. She had to snap herself out of it.

"Can you help me? I'd really love it if we could, you know, meet up a couple of times a week and you can show me how to improve?" He begged her, putting on a most adorable puppy-face that almost made her completely lose it.

'Time alone with Victor?' Her brain was starting to think.

"Can't you ask Monty?" She asked him. "I mean, he's almost as smart as me. Valedictorian is basically a two-horse race between us."

"Yeah, but if I do that then I have to tell him I haven't been using his homework assignments." Victor reminded her. Sarah rolled her eyes. Of course he couldn't tell Monty. Everyone 'knew' Monty did a lot of Victor's homework for him, he wasn't exactly subtle about it. But Sarah had inadvertently learned some time ago that Victor hadn't been submitting them. Monty had been doing homework assignments for Victor out of some kind of feeling of duty after Victor saved him from his cousin Ace when they were kids. Victor had just never had the heart to admit to him that he hadn't been submitting them and handing in his own work instead. He was willing to let everyone else think he was the dumb jock taking short-cuts to spare Monty's feelings by asking him to stop.

"Of course." She replied.

'What are you doing? Spending time alone with Victor?' Her brain asked her. 'That is exactly the last thing...'

"I guess, yeah, I could find some time." She replied.

'D'oh!'

"That's...that's great!" Victor said, grabbing her and hugging her tightly, his excitement overcoming him. Sarah had a slightly dreamy, vacant look on her face as he put her back down. He grabbed his book and headed towards Mrs Finch's class. "You won't regret this I swear!"

"Too late for that." She sighed as she closed her locker. A little way off, Hayley dropped the ninja-curtain she'd erected, and she and Calvin appeared.

"Oh, my God!" Calvin gaped as he saw it all unfolding. "You weren't kidding!"

"I know, right?" She asked. "How amazing was that?"

"Our track record with interfering isn't that great. That whole Preston/Sarah thing showed that." He stated. "So, we're not going to do anything right?"

"No, we've learned our lesson." Hayley agreed.

"But we're still going to entertain ourselves watching this right?" He asked her.

"Oh, totally!" Hayley agreed. "This is way too much fun!"

Up on the Warrior Dome, Badonna rushed to the Executive Lounge to meet up with her first talent acquisition since becoming the new General Manager of Galaxy Warriors. She had styled her hair, looked out her finest robes and by the time she got to the door, her Basher Bot attendants were still working on her appearance. She stood, inspecting herself in the mirror as she tried to ensure she was looking her very best. She'd even gotten the Basher Bots to wear robes, styled after his usual attire to better co-ordinate with him when they appeared on the show.

"Is my hair right? Should I delay them a little longer?" She rattled off as she posed, trying to find just the best way to present herself in her first face-to-face meeting with him. She sprayed herself with some perfume and took a deep breath, before getting one of the Basher Bots to open the door. She strode in, finding him standing in the middle of the room, along with Cosmo and Wrench as they welcomed him. She had instructed them to ensure that whatever he wanted he was to get, regardless of how much it cost or how difficult it was to get. They'd already re-stocked the buffet and the bar with all of his favourites, information she'd gleaned from the various magazine articles she had stored because they featured him.

"Brax, darling! How are you! You look magnificent!" She declared, gliding into the room with all the grace she could muster, coming over to him. She breezed past Cosmo, Wrench and Brax's manager, Tynamonn as she came up Brax, bringing herself right up to him. "Tell me, how was your journey? Not too much of a chore I hope?"

"No, the shuttle ride was very comfortable." He said as he stepped back a little. Badonna stepped in a little closer, draping a hand around his neck.

"I'm a big fan of yours, you know. As soon as I got this job, I just knew I had to have you...uh...for the show!" She told him. "Did you get my fan letters?"

"Uh, yes, I did." He responded, scratching the back of his head and again stepping away from her. "All two hundred of them."

Cosmo and Wrench just looked to each other. Cosmo mouthed 'two hundred' before they both started to snigger. Tynamonn decided now was the time to interject himself into the proceedings.

"Badonna, your contract was more than generous. My client, Brax deserves nothing but the best as I'm sure you'll agree!" He declared as he pulled out the contract, which had a number of brightly-coloured partitions and page markers put in. "But I feel there's some room for improvement for an athlete of Brax's stature that we can..."

"Brax, can you excuse us for just a moment?" She asked as she grabbed Tynamonn and dragged him over to the corner of the room. "That contract is more than generous..."

"Yes, I agree, but I have just a few suggestions..."

"You keep quiet or I'll tell everyone about your 'little' secret!" She warned him. Tynamonn just gasped and clutched the contract tightly. "Go; take that to the legal department. I'll have my representatives see to your amendments, but interrupt me and Brax again and your time on this ship will be...short."

Tynamonn just nodded frantically as she glided back over to Brax.

"Now then, Brax...where were we?" She asked. "Oh, that's right. I've even spruced up my Basher Bots a little for you. You like?"

"Uh..."

"How about we discuss ideas for your first bout over dinner?" She asked.

"Actually I prefer not to fight on a full stomach." He told her. "I was hoping to go down and see what these Rangers are made of for myself."

"Ooh, you're so decisive. You see what you want and just reach out and grab it, don't you?" She asked, grabbing his arm tightly. He just stared at her hand. "You're a man after my own heart! COSMO! Come with us! We have a show to wind up!"

Back on Earth, the Rangers were sitting through math class, going through a lesson as Mrs Finch marked some tests. Mrs Finch never did see it as fair or appropriate that the first experience a lot of kids would have with exams was when they were facing the ones that could potentially alter their lives, so in the months running up to the real exams, she liked to throw some tests at students to give them at least some experience of exams so they would know what to expect.

"Alright class, pencils down." She declared as she finally finished up scoring the last test. She placed her own pen down in view of Sandy so that she would get the message. They all sat up and looked up to the front where she was standing. "You've all done extremely well, don't worry too much if your score is a little lower than you would like."

She started to walk among the students, looking out their tests in turn and handing them down as she went.

"That's exactly what practice runs are for, so we can find areas that you need a little work on." She reminded them as she put the paper down in front of Calvin. The Yellow Ranger just sighed.

"Yeah, like...everything." He muttered. Hayley leaned across, touching his shoulder.

"It's not so bad." She told him. "It's a C, that's a pass."

"C MINUS, and it's barely a pass." He pointed out. "Damn it."

"Like I said, that is what practice is for and it's better you see how these things work now than in an examination hall." She told them sagely. "There was someone not so far from here who needed to repeat her final year maths exam in Summer School and I dare say things turned out pretty well all things considered."

She continued putting down the tests, seeing the reactions from each of the students. It was something of a wake-up call for some. There was a big difference between exams and normal exercises in lessons. The pressure got to a lot of people and it was one of the longest-running issues in education how to address it. Many kids each year who were getting exceptional grades all year ended up succumbing to the occasion and underperforming because they simply didn't do well under standard testing conditions. Many different ideas were tried and there were a few advances, but it was still a major sticking point that the majority of education came down to how people performed on one or two occasions in their lives. There really wasn't an easy answer or way around it, so she just wanted to see the kids get as much experience as possible to be ready.

"C+?" Preston asked. "I was sure I got a B!"

"You're smart Preston, but skipping stages costs you valuable marks. Always show your working." She told him sagely. "It's possible to get the right answer but get no marks if you don't."

Sarah couldn't help looking back at Victor and seeing the look on his face. She had never really thought of him actually caring about his grades before. It was clear that whatever score he got he believed he had it in him to do better. One of the things no one could accuse Victor of was being lazy when he was interested in something. His workouts were enough to put some professional athletes to shame and he always pushed himself to get that one step further, to beat that record, even if it was one he himself had set...

She had to shake her head to clear her thoughts as Mrs Finch came closer.

"Monty, an A, very nice work!" She commended him as she gave him his test. "Very nice work all of you, but especially to Sarah, who got the only A+ in the class!"

"I did?" She asked, snatching her thoughts from her current day-dream as Mrs Finch handed her the test. She allowed herself a little victory-dance at her desk. "That test was so easy! I can't believe I worked so hard to study for it!"

Mrs Finch just paused as she heard this. This was, of course, the one danger with some of these tests. While some people didn't test well, others thrived under test conditions and did exceptionally well, sometimes seemingly without trying. Sarah was a bright girl, she knew that much, but she could also see some of the looks she was getting from others in the class who hadn't done so well. Sometimes when students did well in some tests, it gave them a false sense of confidence and they could get complacent. It was also not exactly the best thing for those other students to hear her going on about how easy she found it. It could be demoralising to some of them.

"Yes, well it's just one test, and some tests are harder than others." She reminded her. "The most important thing to remember is that preparation is everything. Just try to remain calm, keep your minds clear and try to remember that the knowledge is in there, you just have to remind yourself of that when you see the question."

Just then, the bell rang and the kids started packing up.

"Alright class, that was a really good showing, if any of you wants to talk about your tests and what areas to concentrate on I'll be right here, and remember there's another test later in the week so, study hard for that!" She said as she headed to her desk. She looked up and was startled to find Victor standing in front of her. "Victor? What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to talk about my test." He told her.

"Really?" She asked, before shrugging her shoulders. "Alright, pull up a chair!"

As the Rangers and Emma all filed out into the hall, Levi was waiting for them.

"Hey guys, how did the test go?" He asked them. Calvin just sighed.

"Not so good." He commented. Levi just looked to the test and nodded.

"Alright, there's some room for improvement." He agreed. "What about the rest of you?"

"In a word...yeesh!" Sandy responded, showing him her test. It was a C, like Calvin she'd passed, but it was hardly spectacular. The rest of them all showed some varying levels of disappointment and acceptance.

"Oh, come on guys, it wasn't that bad." Emma stated.

"Yeah, exactly, the test wasn't even that hard!" Sarah agreed.

"You know, we might spend a lot of time posing as our enemies' corpses explode in fifty foot fireballs, but there is such a thing as being gracious in victory you know." Calvin grumbled.

"Hey, you'll get it the next time." Sarah stated. "Come on guys, want to hit the mall?"

"OK, but not for long." Hayley told her. "We all have a lot of work to do."

"I was thinking of checking out that new movie, Runaway Train Four!" She told them.

"Runaway Train Four?" Calvin asked wearily as they all headed off, following Sarah as she started searching on her phone for the play list of the local cinemas. "How the hell do you make four movies about runaway trains?"

As they were leaving, Victor came running out of the classroom.

"Sarah, are you free to help me with some tutoring tonight?" He called out, before looking around. "Sarah?"


	3. Too Easy

Mick was in the lab, running some tests on the Green Power Star. The Rangers now knew that Lord Drakkon was on his way, preparing to return to Earth for his invasion, and they wanted to have all the means at their disposal they could.

He still had no idea what the source of Sandy's new power was. No one understood what had happened, all they knew was that when Lord Draven had tried to grab her, he had been repelled by what the Rangers had described as green lightning. He had no clue whatsoever how she had done it, even Sandy didn't seem to know, but so far, any attempt to get her to repeat the feat had failed. Brody had tried in training to get her to do it again, but so far without success.

Mick was studying the Power Star, wondering if it could tell him anything about what Sandy's abilities were. They didn't know much about her Power Star, all they knew was that it wasn't part of the original Nexus Star. It was made later, a feat they weren't sure was possible, much like her new attack. Redbot came in, putting a glass down next to him.

"Thanks, Redbot." Mick said, picking up the glass and taking a sip.

"Have you found anything out?" Redbot asked.

"Well, that depends on what you mean." Mick answered cryptically.

"What does that mean?" Redbot asked him.

"Well, you know how you sometimes get those puzzles where when you find out something you just find out more about what you don't know?" Mick asked him in response. Just then, the secret door opened up. Emma, Sandy and Levi came in.

"Mick." Levi greeted him. "How's it going."

"It's going…slowly." Mick replied. "Like…glacial. Where are the others?"

"They were heading to the mall." Emma told him. "Sandy didn't really feel like going. She had a disappointing score on the math test."

"You haven't figured out what happened?" Sandy asked him.

"Um, no, not yet." He replied honestly.

"So, do you want me to leave the Power Star here?" Sandy asked him.

"Oh, uh…no, that should be fine." Mick told her, taking her Power Star out of the scanner. "Sandy, um…Can I ask you…?"

"Mick, if you ask me something you have to stop covering your mouth." She reminded him.

"Sorry?" He asked.

"When you're thinking, sometimes you cover your mouth." She pointed out. "I'm not able to tell what you're saying if you do that."

"Oh, right, sorry." Mick said, trying to consciously prevent himself from covering his face. He never really thought much about how animated he could be when he talked. "When you went to the farm, what exactly happened?"

"I told you already. I went to find signs Brody and Dane were who Emma was looking for." She told him. "Then the prism started glowing, and next thing I know I'm holding that thing."

"That's everything?" He asked. "That's exactly what happened?"

"Mick, I don't know what you want me to say." Sandy responded.

"I'm sorry, I'm just trying to fill in the details." Mick assured her.

"So, can I go?" Sandy asked him. "I'd like to go study. If I get another grade like today mom and dad'll ground me until I'm in my forties."

"Sure, sure, of course." Mick said, gesturing to the door. Emma and Sandy headed out of the door, leaving Mick, Redbot and Levi in the lab. Levi came to Mick's side.

"Mick, I've known you a little longer than they have." Levi stated. "I get the impression you know a little more than you're telling them."

"Well, I do and I don't." Mick told him. Levi just looked confused.

"I don't get it." He replied.

"That's what I said!" Redbot told him.

"The scans turned up something I didn't expect." Mick told them. "All of your Power Stars, they're all made of Super Ninja Steel, you know, that right?"

"Yeah." Levi responded.

"Well, Sandy's isn't." Mick told him. "That is to say there's Super Ninja Steel IN it, but it's an alloy with…something else."

"What else?" Levi asked.

"That's just the thing, I have no idea." Mick replied. "It doesn't correspond to anything on the periodic table."

"So, it's not from Earth?" Levi asked him. "So where is it from?"

"That, Levi is the 64,000-dollar question." Mick replied.

In another part of the city, the rest of the team were heading for the mall. They were all still coming down after the test, some of them had done better than others, but they were looking for a bit of relaxation before they headed home to get back to work.

"Cal, I keep telling you, it's not that bad." Hayley tried to comfort him. "It's like Mrs Finch said, it's just a practice, it's better you know what you need to work on now than when the final results come in."

"It's not just this, you know I've never been great at school." Calvin told her. "What if this is the best I can do?"

"Cal, you can do pretty much anything if you put your mind to it." She continued. Preston was reading from his book.

"Guys, there's a showing of Runaway Train Four in twenty minutes!" Sarah told them, showing her the screen on her phone. They all just stared at her.

"You were serious about that?" Brody asked.

"You kidding? I want to find out how they stop that train!" She said with a little bit of a squeal in her voice.

"I'm being serious now, how exactly do you make four movies about a runaway train?" Calvin asked. "Don't you just shut off the power and let it roll to a stop?"

"Oh, they did that in the first movie, but for the second and third movie the train was solar powered so they couldn't do that." Sarah told him. "In the second one they had to…"

"I'm sorry I asked." Calvin responded.

"You're sorry? You didn't have to sit through all three of them." Preston told him. "Sarah, we were all just going to go to the mall for a few minutes, maybe get a bite then head home to study."

"Really? The first test was so easy I don't think I need to study." She said, at which they all just stopped. "What?"

"Sarah, we're all glad you did well but…you need to study." Brody reminded her. "It's like with training. You don't break a board one day and then say 'hey, I can break boards now, no need to practice anymore' and just stop training."

"Well, no but…"

"Not to mention not all of us thought the test was that easy!" Calvin said a little bad-temperedly. "You know, it's great that YOU found it easy but just because you find something easy doesn't meant to say it IS easy."

"I…uh…" Sarah started to say.

"You know what? I don't feel hungry after all." Calvin said, shaking his head and starting to walk away.

"What was that about?" Sarah asked, before a loud crack caught all of their attention.

There was a bright flash, and a beam hit the ground a little way in front of the Rangers. They all looked up to see Badonna, along with some Basher Bots wearing some strange looking white robes and a new monster. He looked a lot like a garden gnome, perhaps inspired by Father Christmas. It certainly didn't look particularly intimidating.

"Hello Rangers!" Badonna greeted them.

"Great, it's Odious' flunky." Brody stated.

"Oh, you haven't heard? That's right, I forgot you don't get the group e-mail blast anymore after you quit the show." Badonna responded in a grandiose manner. "There's been a little bit of a…management re-shuffle on the Warrior Dome. Galaxy Warriors wishes Madame Odious well in her future endeavours."

"What?" Brody gasped.

"Uh…Madame Odious left?" Preston asked him.

"No, that's what the press releases say when someone's fired from Galaxy Warriors." Brody told them. "Their severance package is more likely to involved body parts than accrued holiday pay."

"Odious is dead?" Hayley asked in disbelief. Badonna just bowed before her.

"I'd like to introduce you to the new General Manager of Galaxy Warriors…me!" She greeted them.

"Are you prepared to face the most fearsome warrior you've ever faced in your lives?" Tynamonn asked them as he stepped forward.

"What? You?" Brody asked as he gestured to him.

"He looks like one of my grandmother's lawn ornaments." Sarah quipped. Calvin laughed a little, before he looked at her, and his expression slipped. He went back into a guard. Tynamonn stomped his foot in what amounted to a temper tantrum, which really didn't help his attempt at being intimidating.

"Not me!" He whined, before composing himself. "I'm introducing you to the scourge of five systems, the plague of pugilists, the scourge of swordsmen the…"

"Uh…can you skip all the nicknames?" Sarah asked. "I have a show time I really want to catch. Tynamonn just snorted bad-temperedly, before throwing his hand aside, at which another warrior appeared.

"I give you, BRAX!" He declared as Brax appeared, drawing his sword. He definitely looked a lot more intimidating than the others, with his red, flame-like flesh and his demonic snarl.

"Prepare for total annihilation!" He declared as he raised his sword. The Rangers quickly pulled out their morphers, transforming into Ranger mode.

"Here I come!" Brax called out, but as he ran forward, he seemed to be waving his sword around in a chaotic fashion, kind of just circling it around above his head like he had little to no idea what he was doing. More than half the time the blade wasn't even facing the Rangers. Brody leapt into the air, bringing his sword down in what he hoped would be a guard-breaker to open him up for one of the others, but he seemed instead to knock the sword completely out of Brax's hand, and his blade hit him square in the forehead. The monster fell to the ground, clutching at his face, rolling around and screaming in pain.

"Uh…what just happened?" Calvin asked.

"Is that it?" Preston asked.

"Are you…alright?" Brody asked the downed monster. He could never have imagined asking a monster that, but Brax was making such a performance on the ground he felt positively sorry for him. He couldn't help feeling sympathy. Brax looked up to him in a panic and started to scoot away from him as quickly as he could.

"He's…he's too strong!" He squealed in a pathetic manner as Badonna grabbed onto him in a protective manner. "Basher Bots! Protect me!"

"Seriously?" Hayley asked as he, Tynamonn and Badonna all turned tail and ran away. The Rangers made quick work of the Basher Bots, having been hyped up for a much tougher fight, but by the time they destroyed the last one, they saw the three monsters disappear in a flash.

"That just happened right?" Calvin asked, trying to wrap his head around what had happened. None of the others could believe it either.

"So, Odious is gone, Badonna's in charge and the best thing she can throw at us is that guy?" Sarah asked. "Well, this day keeps getting better and better! So, who wants to go to that movie? I'm buying the popcorn!"

"You know what Sarah? I'm not really in the mood." Calvin told her.

"Yeah, that whole weirdness just…I just want to go home." Preston added. With that, they all headed for home. Sarah just shrugged.

"Oh well, it wouldn't be the first time I went to a Runaway Train movie myself." She said as she checked her watch. "Shoot, if I hurry, I can catch the next showing!"

She threw down her hoverboard and sped away, heading for the theatre.

Back at the school, Levi was in a classroom, marking with Mrs Finch as he got a call on his communicator. She knew that he was the Gold Ranger, but he hadn't told her who the others were. He'd made the decision to tell her because he didn't feel like he could continue their relationship if he was keeping it from her. He did, however, feel that it wasn't his place to reveal the others' identities to her. The result was it was safe for him to answer it in front of her.

"Wait, you're going to have to run that one by me again, you're calling to tell me you DON'T need my help?" Levi asked him.

"No, it was a total cinch. The guy was pathetic, I hit him once and he ran away!" Brody informed him.

"Once?" Levi asked him.

"Yeah, I didn't even hit him that hard!" Brody continued. "He just got scared and ran off. I'll tell you all about it later."

"Later like…at the base right?" Levi asked. Brody didn't know that Mrs Finch was in the room with him so he didn't want her to realise that one of the Rangers was staying with him.

"Yeah, sure." Brody answered. As he closed up his Ninja-Comm, looking back to her.

"Well, it looks like good news. No fight today." Levi told her.

"That's what I heard." She sighed. "It's a bit of a shame to be honest."

"A shame?" He asked. "Are you saying you want me to go out and risk my life fighting?"

"No, what I mean is two sub-par challenges in one day might not be good for Sarah." She told him. "I mean, I was a little worried with her reaction to her test score, now I'm really worried she won't take her studies seriously."

"I wouldn't worry too much. Sarah's a smart…" He started to say, before tailing off. "…I mean…I'm sure she's going to work on the test, but what makes you think that she'd have anything to do with that fight?"

"I figured it out." She told him with a little smile. "But thank you for confirming it for me."

"You knew?" He asked her.

"Levi, you hang out with those kids all the time. Either they're on your Ranger team, you're the most dedicated teacher in existence or I really need to be calling the authorities." She rhymed off as she gave him a little smile. "And after what we did last night, I really don't think I have to worry about the last one."

"No, you really don't." He replied as he leant in, kissing her softly. "Um…the other staff don't think I'm…you know…do they?"

"The rest of them aren't that interested." She assured him. "So, how far along are you with your assignments?"

"Far enough to take a break." He replied, putting his work aside. "You want to pick where we go for dinner?"

"I thought it was your turn to choose." Levi replied.

"Oh, it was." She assured him. "But since you just confirmed my suspicions, I figured it was only fair."

In another part of the city, Sandy was going over her homework, trying to figure out where she went wrong in her maths test. Sandy could never claim to have been brilliant at school, but she was a firm believer in the adage that talent only took a person so far. While some people just had particular talents that made it easier to perform certain tasks, whether it was a particular sport, shooting a gun, Martial Arts or even mathematics and science, someone with limited natural talents but who worked hard enough could overcome any shortcomings and even surpass the naturally gifted who had a tendency to rest on their laurels if things were too easy for them. Of course, that didn't mean to say that occasionally it wouldn't be nice to be like Monty or Sarah and get that feeling of getting things right the first time.

Sandy wasn't stupid by any stretch of the imagination, she was just, average as a student, but she really wanted to do better. She didn't even really know what she wanted to do as a career, but she didn't want to be limited to only a handful of options. She at least wanted to have the choice of a couple of colleges, even if she had no idea just yet how she was going to pay for any of them.

"Alright, I don't know where I'm going wrong here." She said. "I'm doing the working the way I'm meant to, but the answer doesn't come out the same as in the back of the book."

She looked over to where Emma was sitting, staring into space.

"Emma?" She asked. When she still didn't get a response, she threw a pen at her.

"HEY!" Emma complained.

"Emma, you said you were going to help me!" Sandy reminded her.

"Oh, right, sure I did." Emma responded. "So, what is it you're doing again?"

"You're…you're really not paying attention, are you?" Sandy asked her, putting down her pen. "Alright, let's talk about your thing."

She wheeled her chair over to her sister and took her hands in her own, looking to her.

"You did it, you finally found him. You found all of them." Sandy reminded her. "It's only a few days until the weekend. It's understandable you're a little distracted."

"I don't know, it's just…" Emma started to say, trying to think of what she wanted to say. "You've seen them, right?"

"I'm not sure I follow." Sandy told her.

"Do you know what he asked me to go and do with them? He wants me to go fishing." She told her. "I've never caught a fish in my life! Hell, mom and dad had to take me home the first time they took us for sushi because I wouldn't stop throwing up!"

"So maybe you can ask to do something else." Sandy suggested.

"It's not the fishing." Emma explained. "That is to say, it's not JUST the fishing. You've seen the three of them, haven't you?"

"Yeah?" Sandy asked.

"All three of them are all tall and muscular and…all three of them are black belts." She reminded her. "I can barely throw a decent turn-kick on a good day without ending up on the back of my skull."

"Brody says you're doing much better…"

"He has to say that." Emma told her.

"I don't think he's the kind of guy who'd sugar-coat things because you're his half-sister."

"He has to say that because they want to keep you on the team." Emma reminded her.

"You think they're humouring you because they're worried, I'll leave if they don't?" Sandy asked her.

"No, I'm just worried." Emma asked her. "We're so different. Brody and Levi are different, but they still have a lot in common and they have a lot in common with Dane…what if he doesn't like me?"

"He'll like you." Sandy assured her.

"But what if he doesn't?" Emma asked her.

"Isn't that what this weekend is all about?" Sandy asked her. Emma just shrugged.

"I don't know, I guess after so long looking I'm just worried I'll be a disappointment." She answered.

"If he is, then he's an idiot and I would say that straight to his face." Sandy assured her. "You might drive me absolutely insane; you've managed to get me into more trouble than anyone I know and you are responsible for maybe seventy percent of all the scars I have but you are the smartest, sweetest, most amazing sister anyone could have."

She pulled her in, hugging her tightly.

"Go, have a great time with him, see how things go." Sandy told her as they parted. "Whatever happens, we're going to be here."

"Thanks." Emma responded, before turning to Sandy's books. "Alright, so let's take a look at…wait…really? You really can't see where you went wrong here?"

Sandy slapped the back of her head.

"Hey!"

"Just because I love you doesn't mean you can't get on my nerves." Sandy reminded her. "Now, what did I do?"


	4. Breathing Space

Hayley and Calvin pulled into the parking lot outside the school, Calvin taking some time to find a parking spot. He groaned as he finally managed to find a spot at the very back of the lot.

"I really hate when the lot is so full." He grumbled as he started to set up screens around the inside of his car to prevent the sunlight from making the inside of the car unbearably hot while he was in the school. California sunshine was no joke at this time of the year, and it wasn't the first time someone had actually burnt themselves on their own upholstery if they weren't careful. "At least we got a spot this time. I could really live without Clint giving me another ticket."

"To be fair, you did break the sprinklers that time." She reminded him as they disembarked, heading towards the school. She stopped short as they were approaching the front.

"Hayley, what's…?" He asked, before noticing the problem. "Mrs Marx?"

"Good morning Calvin, how are you?" She asked. Her demeanour suggested she wasn't especially happy, and it wasn't as if she made a habit of coming to the school to see Hayley. He also knew that Hayley had gotten a number of messages from her mom about Trevor being back home, messages that so far, she had either ignored or promised to get back to her on but hadn't so far.

"I'm…good." He said rather awkwardly. Normally he got on with Hayley's parents, all of them. Even Trevor during the time he wasn't being controlled by Psycho Green liked Calvin. "You?"

"Calvin, can I ask you to give us a moment?" She asked him. Calvin started to mumble and looked between Hayley and her mom, before Hayley finally nodded. "I'll…get you a croissant."

He headed into the school, leaving Hayley alone with her mom. Hayley just sighed.

"Can we not do this now please?" She asked her.

"Well, when do you propose we do it? You've ignored all my other messages!" Laura replied. "I thought you should know; Trevor's lost his job."

"I'm…I'm sorry to hear that." Hayley responded. "I know how much he loved being a cop."

"It might have been nice if his step-daughter was there for moral support when it happened." Laura commented.

"Mom, you know I have a lot on at school right now." Hayley replied regretfully.

"I know it's a tough time, but your step-father is going through a tough time too." Laura continued, trying to keep her patience with her daughter. "Right now, he could do with all the support he can get, and when you aren't home it has to feel like his daughter doesn't have his back."

"Look, I get that this is tough for him but…it's tough for all of us." Hayley told her. "Look, I'll be home at the weekend."

"Hayley, he needs you now…"

"I'll be there at the weekend, I promise!" Hayley assured her. "I really need to go."

"I'll pick you up on Friday." Laura told her.

"Sure." Hayley replied. "I'll see you then."

Laura just sighed impatiently, before getting into her car and driving off.

Inside the school, Sarah was by her locker, getting her books for the first class. She suddenly became aware of another presence.

"Well, what do you think?" Victor asked. She took a deep breath, before closing the door to her locker, looking at him. He was standing before her wearing the school's security uniform. He and Monty had gotten themselves deputised by Clint. In truth it was little more than a glorified hall monitor gig. Heck, even Clint's job was little more than that.

"It's um…nice!" She said, looking at him. It looked a little like a Halloween costume of someone trying to go as a police officer. It looked pretty cheap and tacky, and although it looked like it was meant to be a police uniform it was different enough to make sure no one would mistake anyone wearing it as police. He had a belt that held a radio, but instead of mace or a baton or a gun, he had a citation book strapped to his hip. It was a running joke that Clint went through about three or four of those a week. He had a badge, and the light blue shirt was tight…very tight!

"Yeah, it's pretty great isn't it?" Victor asked her. "But for some reason they didn't have shirts in my size. It's really chafing at the arms.

"Uh huh." Sarah said as she looked to the sleeves. Victor's heavily muscled arms strained against it, and it looked like it was cutting in a little, even when he was at rest. If he flexed, she was sure it would strain to breaking point.

"Well, I guess we have to work with what we have. Clint's promised to order me another one." Victor said. "Until then, I guess I just don't breathe too hard right?"

"Uh huh." Sarah said, turning away from him and biting her lip a little.

"So, I tried to catch up to you yesterday for some tutoring but you were already gone by the time I got outside." Victor told her. "Maybe we can get together later? I have study hall after morning break."

"Only if you wear that shirt." She whispered.

"What?" Victor asked, not hearing her. Sarah suddenly panicked.

"I just said…uh…sure, that would be…fine!" She told him. "I'll meet you in the uh…mall, in that smoothie place you like."

"OK." Victor replied with a smile. "I'll catch you then."

As Sarah scrambled to get her books and rush off as fast as dignity would allow, Victor sorted out his own books, before pausing as a thought came to him.

"She knows what smoothie place I like?" He asked, before shrugging. "I guess she must have seen me there."

Later in the day, the Rangers and Emma assembled in the lab to debrief with Mick. They normally would have done so as soon as they could, but between the fact all of them had such a heavy workload and a lot of other issues on their calendars now, they had opted to leave it until the morning recess, which was the next most convenient opportunity.

In truth as well, none of them were even sure there was anything to report. The encounter had been utterly bizarre, and was so unremarkable they had to wonder if it was even worth thinking about. Even hearing Brody recount the entire encounter didn't make the whole situation seem any less weird. It didn't take him long to re-tell the story, but then again there was only so much detail anyone could put into "I hit the guy once and he ran away."

"He went down in a single hit?" Redbot asked in astonishment. "That does not compute! No Galaxy Warriors monster has ever been defeated that fast."

"Yeah, it shocked me too." Brody admitted. "I worked on that show for years and even though sometimes they'd throw out some squash matches they made sure that the monsters that were getting squashed could at least make it through a few minutes. Anyone that wouldn't last that long was usually taken out in the dark matches before they got to broadcast."

"I don't know, it just doesn't make any sense." Levi agreed.

"Well, maybe they've just run out of good fighters?" Emma offered hopefully. "I mean, you guys have kind of gone through their roster like a blowtorch, haven't you? Anyone that you haven't blown up on the show was probably killed by the asteroid."

"And it looks like Badonna was telling the truth about Odious too." Mick said, pulling up the Galaxy Warriors site, showing them the press release about her departure from the show. "Look, 'Galaxy Warriors has come to terms on the release of Madame Odious. We wish her well in her future endeavours.' It says it right here, she's gone, and Badonna's the new General Manager."

"Odious was in a pretty bad way after the Foxatron fight, and after that blast in the Anti-Verse." Brody reminded them all. "It wouldn't surprise me if they took the opportunity to take her out before she recovered."

"Got to love the Klingon promotion method." Sandy stated. "But Odious was seriously dangerous, Badonna was right there and didn't even try to fight us. She was too busy running with the other two."

"So, they took out the last of their strong leadership and they're running out of strong fighters?" Sarah asked with a note of joy in her tone. "If that's what they have to throw at us now? Maybe they'll finally get the message and quit."

"Uh…I'm not sure we should be letting our guard down just yet." Mick stated. "I mean, do remember that Drakkon is still out there somewhere and we're still not sure what he's up to."

"Well, who the hell cares?" Sarah asked him. "If he was betting on Odious to get him into this dimension then it looks like he just rolled a snake eyes."

"I've got to admit though, it would be nice to have some breathing room." Brody admitted. "I mean, this has to delay Drakkon right? If he needs to find someone else strong enough to bring him through? It'll be nice to concentrate on some study for once."

"Not that we need it." Sarah responded. "Anyway, I've got study hall next, so I was going to head to the mall. Anyone want to come?"

"Sarah, we're all going to be studying." Brody told her. "See you later?"

"OK, suit yourself." She replied as they all headed out. "Have fun studying, not that you'll need it."

Mick came to stop her as she got her bag and was getting ready to head to the mall.

"Sarah, I've been meaning to ask you about something." Mick stated.

"Yes?" Sarah asked, fidgeting a little impatiently. She really wanted to get to the smoothie place early before the first of the lunchtime office crowds started to get there. Mick gestured to a whole bunch of spare parts, wires and circuit boards lying on the table.

"This stuff." He told her. Sarah just looked to it and smiled.

"Oh yeah, I'd almost forgotten about that! It was a little project I was working on! Sorry about the mess, I was working on an extra-powerful version of the Ninja Star Blade." She informed him. "I was going to call it my 'Super Star Blade'."

"Impressive." Mick said as he looked around the components. "Now, since you're clearly not busy studying, and you obviously have nothing better to do, I was thinking, it's a while before my next class, how about we finish the project together?"

"But why?" Sarah asked with a derisive little laugh. Mick just looked to her curiously.

"Because you were creating a more powerful weapon." Mick stated.

"Yeah, and now our bad guys are about as threatening as a furby." She chuckled. "We really don't need to go nuclear on them. I'm not even sure we need to morph to take that guy down."

"But you know about Drakkon." Mick reminded her.

"Yeah, and we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." She told him. "If we ever do now his allies are so useless."

"So, you want to wait until you NEED a weapon to make it?" Mick asked her.

"Well, no but…oh, you know what I mean Mick! It's not like we're on a tight schedule here!" She responded. "I'm going for some smoothies, if you need the workspace just…shove all that stuff to the side and I'll deal with it later."

As she walked out, leaving Mick and Redbot behind. Redbot got a box and was starting to put the parts away.

"Redbot, leave that stuff where it is for now." Mick told him.

"But I thought it was just mess." Redbot stated. "If Sarah isn't going to be working on it…"

"Just leave it for now, alright?" He asked. Redbot just put the stuff back on the table and wandered off to find some other jobs to keep him busy.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Cosmo sealed his office and activated his jammer to ensure he wasn't being monitored. He opened up a communications link. Lord Drakkon appeared in a hologram before him.

"How are things progressing?" Drakkon asked him.

"Badonna is leaving a lot to be desired in her new role." Cosmo told him. "She's far too infatuated with Brax to do much else. She's spent all her time at his bedside wailing over him like a soon-to-be widow."

"Badonna is precisely where I want her to be." Drakkon assured him. "And don't worry, I already have my next step in place. The next warrior is already on his way to the Warrior Dome."

"I hope he's better than Brax." Cosmo responded.

"You doubt my judgements?" Drakkon asked him. Cosmo just held up his hands defensively, waving them frantically.

"Oh, no, no, no! Of course not!" He protested.

"Good, because I'd hate to think I misjudged you." Drakkon replied. "I'd hate to have to find someone else to run all my State Media when I take over."

"No, My Lord, of course not!" Cosmo replied. "Would you like me to make any special arrangements for your next warrior?"

"Just see to it Brax has all he needs for now." Drakkon told him. "The next one will see to himself, and he'll really hit the scene with a bang."

"I understand My Lord." Cosmo answered as the communication shut off. He didn't like having to play along with Badonna, but at least she wasn't as restrictive in his show as Odious had been. Perhaps it would be for the best to keep Brax around. As long as she had him to drool over, she didn't seem to care much about what he was doing or whatever else was going on in the ship. It was the next best thing to having complete control, and Drakkon had already assured him when the time came, he would give him that control when his conquest was complete. After that, he didn't care what happened to Badonna. If this was the price to pay, for now he would play along.

Sarah arrived at the smoothie shop, kicking up her hoverboard and heading towards the shop. She looked inside, finding that Victor was already there.

She saw him sitting, waiting for her. He was still wearing his uniform. She had to catch her breath a little as she was about to head in.

"Come on, get it together, it's just Victor." She reminded herself. "You've spoken to him a bunch of times, it's all fine…"

That was when she saw herself in a reflection in a window. She went to it, starting to sort out some errant hairs, before stopping herself as she realised what she was doing.

She headed into the café, walking up to the table. Victor smiled as he saw her coming.

"Hey, you showed up!" He called out as she came over, sitting with him.

"I said I would, didn't I?" She asked him.

"Well, yeah, but it's not like you don't have a lot on your dance card right now." He responded. "I'd have understood if you sent me a text to tell me you had to postpone."

"We actually don't have that much on right now." Sarah told him honestly. "It looks like the monsters have actually run out of ideas and powerful fighters if that fight, we had yesterday is anything to go by."

"You had a fight yesterday?" Victor asked her. "I never heard anything about it on the news."

"I'm not surprised, it was over almost as soon as it started." She told him. "If that's the best they have, this thing is over."

"Really?" He asked. "Well…that's great, I guess! So, what kind of smoothie do you like? My treat."

"Just…whatever you're having." She replied.

"OK, two banana and honey it is." He replied, snapping his fingers and heading to the counter. Sarah watched him go, a little smile crossing her face as she saw him head to the counter.

"Oh, that uniform is not helping." She sighed. "Wait…do I even have my math books?"

She started to rummage around in her bag, before realising that she had indeed left them at school. She just rolled her eyes.

"Good job, Sarah, great job." She muttered. "What the hell is wrong with me?"

Just then, as Victor was returning with their smoothies, she looked up to him as he put them down, sitting with her.

"So, where do we begin?" He asked her.

"We begin by sharing your books?" She suggested. "I just realised I forgot mine. I must have left them in my locker!"

"Really? That doesn't sound like you." Victor commented.

"I guess I'm just distracted…"

"Distracted? What by?" He asked her. "You just said the monster battles are getting easier!"

"Uhhhhhh." Was the most articulate response Sarah could find herself able to give. It felt like her brain was shorting out all over the place, none of her neurons was able to make any kind of connections to come up with something to say. The last thing she wanted to say was the thing that was distracting her was him.

"Never mind, we all have those moments." He assured her. "I remember one time I went to football practice and I forgot my cup. I think you can tell how that ended."

"Uh huh." She murmured as he laid his books out on the table before her. He also put his test down on the table.

"Alright, I know I wanted you to help yesterday but I went ahead and checked what I'd done on the test against the work we've been doing in the book and I think I found most of what I was doing wrong." He said, before seeing her straining to see. "Here, this'll help."

He shifted closer on the couch, ending up right nest to her. Sarah let out a little whimper as he was almost pressed right against her, moving his books around for her to see. He took a sip from his smoothie.

"Now, I was having a little trouble with number four…"

Sarah just nodded politely, barely hearing a word he said as he showed her the work, he had done the previous night. She had a feeling this was going to be the longest hour of her life.


	5. Fail To Prepare

The team assembled outside of Mrs Finch's math class after study hall, and they were still quizzing each other on a few problems to keep themselves sharp. Mrs Finch had only promised them that there would be another test "later in the week", but she did like to surprise people. That meant it could be anywhere between the very next class and their last lesson on Friday.

The students were in various stages of preparations for any future tests. The exercise had worked well as a wake-up call, showing the students that there was a very different environment between classroom assignments or even homework and exam conditions. Although many believed that simply teaching people to pass tests was not necessarily a good way forward, with someone's performance on a single opportunity not necessarily being representative of their overall performance in any field, the fact was that it was an environment that people needed to know about. Calvin had worked under pressure before, replacing car components that were falling apart and suchlike, but even though he was making the exact same decisions about what to do, how to progress, what tools and parts to use and suchlike was exactly the same, answering writing it down on paper was very different from working from instinct in a practical setting.

"Man, I can't believe I had such a problem with number seven." Calvin commented as he looked over the worksheets they'd done. "I just couldn't visualise it before."

"I know what you mean." Preston chipped in. "I know they keep twisting questions, putting different spins on it, lining it up different ways to throw us off but once you start breaking it down into its component parts most of them are the same."

"I guess it's just a case of seeing through the code." Emma agreed. Just then, they saw Victor and Sarah arriving back, lining up with the other students.

"Hey, Victor." Brody greeted him. Nice costume."

"It's not a costume, it's a uniform." Victor replied as Monty arrived from another direction, wearing an outfit the exact same. "Monty and I just signed up to help Clint with security."

"You did?" Calvin asked him.

"Yeah, we just…wanted to do our bit! Help out with…HEY!" Victor called out, pointing down the hall they all looked to where a kid had tossed a can into a trash can, only for it to bounce out onto the floor. He snapped his fingers and pointed to it. "Pick it up or get written up!"

The kid just rolled his eyes, before picking up the can, dumping it into the nearest trash can, before walking away. Victor just smiled.

"I didn't know Clint even could recruit people." Hayley answered honestly.

"Well, ideally he should have a staff of five for a school this size, but they can't get anyone to take the other jobs. Clint was the only one that stayed once Galvanax showed up." Victor told them. "So, they let us help out."

"Right, that's great!" Calvin said as he stifled a laugh, seeing Sarah shuffling around a little uncomfortably, trying to look anywhere but at Victor. "So, I guess we don't have to worry about the parking situation now…"

"You better be in the designated parking zone mister!" Victor warned him. "And if I see that massive thing even an inch over the line you're getting written up!"

"Wow, I was only joking, jeez!" Calvin responded.

"It has to be said, the uniform really suits you!" Hayley complimented him. "Sarah, what do you think?"

"Mmmhmmm." She muttered as she tried to keep her gaze away from him.

"I don't know, the shirt is just way too tight." Victor stated. "It really isn't great, especially around my…"

His sleeve suddenly burst as he moved his arm. He just groaned.

"Damn it!" Victor muttered. "The sooner Clint gets me a new uniform the better."

Just then, the door opened and Mrs Finch gestured them all inside.

"Come on in class, we have a…oop! Someone's keen!" She commented as Sarah rushed past her into the classroom. Hayley and Calvin just looked to each other and sniggered a little as the rest of the class filed into the room. Sarah took up a desk right at the front of the class, hoping that if she took a desk there, she wouldn't find herself with Victor in her line of sight. He and Monty by force of habit always sat at the back. Mercifully it looked like that was a habit that hadn't been broken by their newfound civic-minded ways.

"Alright class, sit at your desks, quickly now! Are we all ready? Alright, now I warned you I'd be testing you at various times, and surprise! That includes right now! So, get out your calculators, books and phones away. I hope you've all been working hard and looked at the comments on your last test."

"Another test today?" Calvin complained. "But we had one yesterday!"

"And that would be why I said I'd be testing you at various times Mr Maxwell." She reminded him, beginning to hand out the tests. "If you've all been working, doing as I suggested and taking yesterday's test as an opportunity to look at the areas you need to work on, then everything should be fine."

Sarah barely even noticed as Mrs Finch slid the test down in front of her. She looked to the test, but as she did, suddenly her mind just seemed to hit a wall. The problems on it, the diagrams, the words, they all just seemed to kind of jumble and become incomprehensible. She shook her head as she tried to clear her mind and focus on the problem at hand. The first problem said something about how long it would take to get to a destination…all she could think about was the runaway train in her movie from the previous night. She threw up her hand.

"Uh…Mrs Finch? I think you gave me the wrong test!" Sarah told her. Mrs Finch came over and gave it a little look, before smiling.

"No, this is the same as the rest." She told her. "Alright class, no talking, you may begin!"

Sarah just stared at the first problem, trying to read her way through it, trying to break it down…and then all she could think about was Victor's shirt and seeing it split open. She skipped to the next problem, but as she started trying to read through it, all of a sudden all she could think about was smoothies. She tried to think about the test the previous day, the one that she'd found so easy but…something in her brain just wouldn't make the connections. It seemed like it was a different language! Maybe Hayley would be fine with that but…

She looked around and found everyone scribbling frantically. Some of them had intense looks of concentration on their faces. Calvin looked like he was about to burst a blood vessel, but he was still writing.

"Is everything alright Sarah?" Mrs Finch asked. Sarah just looked to her.

"Huh?" She asked. Mrs Finch just tapped a finger to her test, before going back to patrolling the class. Sarah just flopped forward, resting her head on her hands, reading through the test again and again, it was a good twenty minutes before she was able to start writing.

Over in the Marx house, Trevor was sitting on the couch with the newspaper open to the classifieds and the phone in his hand when Laura came back on an early lunch break. She came in, carrying a couple of sub sandwiches as he was talking.

"Experience? What do you mean you want more applicable experience?" He asked. The exasperation in his tone was obvious. Although he'd only technically been looking for a job now for a couple of days, it wasn't as though he was working while he was at the Promethea institute. He listened in as the person on the other end explained. "You want a night watchman at a mall! I was a police officer for over a decade! What could be more applicable than that?" The other voice said something, but looking at the expression on Trevor's face, it was clear that he didn't get the answer he was looking for.

"Alright…no, trust me, I understand." Trevor grunted as he started clenching his jaw. "Yeah, thanks, I appreciate that."

He hung up the phone, slamming it down more than a little aggressively before scoring off the ad in the paper.

"No luck?" She asked.

"He said he'll keep my application on file." Trevor told her. "So, if you measure success as how many filing cabinets your CV takes up space in then yes, I'm doing great! Presuming it didn't go straight into the shredder as soon as he saw my name."

"Look, you don't know…"

"I do know Laura, this is…it's just pointless!" He blurted out. "Thanks to the press, I can't get a job anywhere!"

"Trevor, you've only been trying a couple of days." She reminded him.

"Most of the positions I've been applying for have been advertised for over a year. They can't get anyone to fill them!" Trevor told her. "There are guys in the department that have done stuff that is their fault and virtually nothing happened to them. Davies left his gun on a damn bus; Jefferson backed his cruiser over some old lady's walker…just last year Travis shot a hairdresser! He saw him holding a damn hairdryer and put a bullet in his gut and he still has a job! But thanks to the papers I'm always going to be 'Psycho Green'."

"Trevor, there's someone out there that's going to give you a job." Laura assured him.

"Yeah, but it won't be a job as a cop." He grumbled.

"Well, maybe not." She answered. "But if they're willing to cut you loose over something that wasn't your fault while keeping on a guy that can't tell the difference between a Revlon and a Glock, then maybe you'd be better off without them."

"Look, I know you're just trying to help, but let's face facts, if the most decorated street officer in Summer Cove can't get a job as a tin-badge night-watchman then maybe the world is trying to tell me something." He muttered. Laura took the paper and looked at it for a moment, before pointing to an ad.

"Look, there's other jobs out there." She pointed out to him.

"You're kidding right?" He asked.

"Well, what do you have to lose?" She asked him. "It's only a phone call."

He picked up the phone, and taking a deep breath, he dialled.

"Hello, Principal Hastings?" He asked. "Yes, my name is Trevor Marx. I'd…I'd like to enquire about your vacancy on your security team."

Back at the school, the math class was just finishing up. Everyone was coming out with their tests in their hands, viewing their grades. There was a wide range of reactions. Having only been one day since the last test, there was obviously only so much anyone could really do in that time, but there were some variances in people's performance.

"That was brutal." Brody commented. "I was lucky to get a B."

"I know it was only one day, but…I do feel like the work did help us." Preston said, showing them his paper. "I mean, I went from a B- to a B so…that's something. How'd you do Sandy?"

"C+." She replied. "At least I'm likely to see sunlight once my parents see that. It's an improvement."

"I got a B+" Hayley told them. "Mrs Finch was right, letting us see what we were doing made things so much easier to work on! How about you Cal?"

"It's better, I guess." He replied with a shrug. "I got a few more points."

"Hey, it's nothing to feel bad about." Hayley assured him. "That test was WAY more difficult than yesterdays."

"Yeah, it totally was." Emma assured him. "If your score went up, that's a huge thing."

Victor and Monty came bounding out of the classroom, before dancing down the hallway. The Rangers just stared after them.

"Well…I guess we don't need to ask if those two did better." Brody commented. "How about you Sarah?"

The Pink Ranger was staring at her paper, looking more than a little shell-shocked.

"Uh…Sarah? You alright?" Preston asked her.

"Y…y…yesterday's test was so easy, but todays was so much harder." She said in a distant voice.

"Well, yeah, it was but…you did, alright didn't you?" Emma asked her. Sarah just handed her the test. "Uh…"

"What?" Hayley asked.

"I got a B-." Sarah told them. It was a pretty decent grade, but certainly not the level Sarah was used to getting from math or science subjects. It was certainly a come-down from the A+ she'd received the day before.

"Well, that's…good." Sandy said, showing her the C+ she'd gotten. "I know I'd have been delighted with that…"

"That was NOT FAIR!" Sarah snapped. They all just stared at her.

"Sarah, it was only one test." Brody reminded her.

"Yeah, an unfair test!" Sarah continued to rant, fuming as she struggled to muddle through what was going on in her mind. She just couldn't get her mind into the test for the most part, and by the time she finally did, there was no time to give it her all. She had rushed through a lot of the questions and she was sure she'd made a few wrong turns as she cut corners to be able to get through the test in the time she had left once she could finally get her head in the game. "It was not fair of Mrs Finch to make today's test so much harder than yesterdays!"

"Sarah, it's going to be alright." Preston assured her. "I mean, a B- isn't so bad…"

"No, this is not right! It wasn't fair of Mrs Finch to make that test so much harder than…"

She heard a little cough and suddenly stopped talking. She could see the expressions on the faces of the other Rangers and knew exactly what she would find if she turned around. Her stomach started to form into knots, before she heard the voice.

"Ms. Thompson." Mrs Finch said. "Can I speak to you for a moment in my class?"

Sarah sheepishly turned and headed back into the classroom, while the other Rangers and Emma just watched as Mrs Finch closed the door behind her.

"I do not think I've ever seen Mrs Finch look that pissed!" Calvin commented.

"I mean, the test was tougher, sure, but…"

"But what?" Hayley asked, looking to Brody. It was an awkward moment of silence, but Sandy was the one that finally broke it.

"Guys, maybe we should head to the lab." She suggested. "I'd really like to train now."

"Sure." Brody agreed, before they headed off.

In the classroom, Mrs Finch pulled a chair up to her desk and clicked her fingers before pointing into it. Sarah slowly moved to the chair, sitting down as Mrs Finch got into her chair on the opposite side of the desk. She rested her elbows on the desk and tented her hands.

"Well?" She asked.

"Well, what?" Sarah asked. "You called me in here."

"Yes, I did." Mrs Finch told her. "I thought since you're clearly unhappy with how I teach my class you'd like the opportunity to speak to me face-to-face like an adult rather than screaming about it in the hallway like a child."

"Hey, you can't…"

"Sarah, I like to pride myself on treating people on the way they act. If you have a problem with me or my class, I am more than willing to discuss it. Sarah tensed up, looking straight to her.

"I don't think the test was fair." Sarah told her.

"Well, yes, I think we've established that part." Mrs Finch told her. "Would you mind explaining why you don't think it was fair?"

"That test was so much harder than the other one!" Sarah told her.

"Yes, it was." Mrs Finch told her, before taking out a test and putting it in front of her. "It was also the final exam for my class in 2010."

Sarah looked to the test, it was identical to the one she had just taken, but it was marked as being the exam board approved final exam for that year. She looked to Mrs Finch.

"Tell me, Ms Thompson…"

"Sarah." Sarah interjected.

"Oh, I think this is a Ms. Thompson moment, don't you?" Mrs Finch asked her chillingly. "Tell me, when you got your test back yesterday, what did you do?"

"I…I went…"

She started to stammer. Mrs Finch just glared at her, waiting for the answer.

"I went to see a movie." She told her. "Runaway Train Four."

"Well, I hope for your sake it was a good movie." Mrs Finch replied with a little smirk. "Perhaps if you'd gone home or gone to the library and done some work like everyone else, your grade would have been better."

"But that test was…"

"And not every test is as difficult as every other!" Mrs Finch interrupted her sharply, stunning Sarah slightly and causing her to shrink back into her chair. "Some tests are harder than others, it's called LIFE Ms. Thompson."

Sarah just stared at her, stunned completely into silence.

"Just like the challenges we face in life, some of them are easy, some of them are hard. That is why if you're wise, you'll always do your best to be ready for the hard ones. You never know when you're going to hit a tough time. You never know when some big challenge is just around the corner, all you can do is be ready for it when it comes!"

She got up off her chair and leaned in over the table.

"Now, I will presume that I've made my point Ms. Thompson." She told her in a low, even tone. "I'm even willing to overlook what just happened out there as a lapse in judgement. Lord knows I've had a few in my life. But make no mistake about it, if you EVER decide to besmirch my name and my reputation that I have worked VERY hard to earn in public again, I will have no second thoughts about writing you up and giving you detention until you graduate, do I make myself clear?"

Sarah just nodded.

"I said, do I make myself clear?" She asked again.

"Yes, Mrs Finch." Sarah replied meekly. Mrs Finch just sat back down.

"Good." Mrs Finch told her. "Now, run along. I'm sure you've got somewhere else you'd rather be."

Sarah gathered up her things and got out of the chair, leaving the classroom with a lump in her throat. It had been a long time since a teacher had called her out as strongly as Mrs Finch just had. There was a part of her that was angry at being yelled at, but it was overcome with another feeling, one of guilt, one that felt like she deserved it. She had lashed out in her disappointment at her performance and in the process had questioned Mrs Finch's professionalism and judgement. It was something that she was clearly not willing to take.

Sarah wiped away a tear as her communicator bleeped.

"You've got Sarah." She replied.

"Mick just called, Brax is back." He told her. "It looks like some monsters just don't learn. He's out by the limestone cliffs."

"I'll meet you there." Sarah responded, shutting off her communicator and heading out to meet them.


	6. Brax's Return

The Rangers all arrived at the limestone cliffs on their Mega Morph Cycles, assembling as they got there. Sarah was still reeling from the roasting Mrs Finch gave her, but between her disappointing performance in the test, the confusion she felt over her stupid infatuation with Victor consuming every moment of her thoughts, and the rawness she felt about being called out by her favourite teacher, she was definitely in a mood to punch something. Of course, since it was Brax, she had no idea how much punching there'd actually be.

Normally when the team arrived at the scene of a monster sighting, they were instantly leaping into action, hyped up and ready for action, getting the adrenaline pumping and ready for anything, but when they got there, instead they saw a sight which caused them all to pull up to a gentle stop and get off their bikes slowly, recalling their bikes and staring in disbelief. Calvin kind of stood, rubbing the back of his head.

"Uh…am I the only one that kind of feels bad for the guy?" He asked. Looking to the middle of the clearing, they found Brax, far from causing any kind of chaos or damage to attract their attention…he was actually sitting on the ground, hugging his knees and rocking back and forward. He was sobbing loudly, openly crying about the fact he was sent out there to meet them.

"I'm not sure if we should be fighting this guy." Hayley agreed.

"Jeez, can you even call it self-defence if the other guy isn't making a move?" Levi asked. They all started to slowly approach.

"Um…are you OK?" Brody asked him. Brax looked up as he saw them.

"Cosmo says I have to come and fight you on the show." He sobbed. "But I already know you're all too strong and would just destroy me!"

"Well, we don't HAVE to fight." Preston suggested. "I mean, Brody, isn't submission a viable means to end a fight on this show?"

"You mean…give up?" Brax asked.

"I…don't remember, I can't remember the last time a monster ever did." Brody admitted. This only made Brax start crying harder. "Oh, no, just because I don't remember doesn't mean…aw man, now I feel really bad!"

"Look, I don't know how all this works, but what if you just, you know, left?" Hayley asked him. "Just got up and ran away and we just, didn't bother to follow you."

"I guess eventually the broadcast would have to end when they realised the fight was over." Levi responded, looking to Brax. "So, what do you say? You just get up, start running and we just pretend all of this never happened?"

"You…you'd do that for me?" Brax asked, looking up to them. Brody and Levi both offered him a hand to get up.

"Yeah, I mean the only reason we even fight at all is because monsters keep tearing up our home." Preston assured him. "If you don't do that, we have no reason to want to hurt you!"

"Alright, I…I guess I can do that." He replied, blowing his nose and wiping his nose on his wrist, before reaching out, grabbing Levi and Brody's hands so they could help pull him to his feet.

"There we go, that wasn't so tough now was it?" Brody asked as he turned to leave, only he was pulled back as he realised Brax hadn't released his hand. He hadn't released Levi's either. A sick smile crossed his face and he let out a savage yell. With a power neither of them knew he had, he started swinging them around, using them to smack the other Rangers away, before pounding them both repeatedly into the ground. With a flick of his wrists, he sent both the Red and Gold Ranger flying into the cliffs behind him, where they both hit with a huge impact, sending dust and rock everywhere. They both tumbled down, de-morphing as they went, before lying, groaning on the ground.

"Hey! We were letting you go!" Sarah called out as they pulled out their Ninja Blasters, peppering him with shots. As soon as the last shot hit home, Brax just looked down to the last hit, which was still smoking, looking at it like they had thrown a Nerf ball at him, before looking up and cackling. "Wait, what…what's going on?"

"Guys, anyone else starting to think we just got played?" Calvin asked. Brax cast out a dark, powerful mist attack which burned at the Rangers' suits, forcing them all to the ground, sparking as the power of their suits struggled to protect them.

"OK, we definitely got played!" Hayley agreed. "Guys, he's been playing possum this whole time!"

"Playing possum?" Preston groaned. "Man, and we fell for it!"

"You sure did! Hook, line and sinker!" Brax called out as he powered up his sword, running straight through, hacking down Preston, Sandy and Hayley in short order, who all de-morphed as they hit the ground. Calvin called the Lion Fire Armour Star to his hand, but Sarah grabbed his wrist.

"Sarah…"

"Cal, we can't win this thing right now!" She told him. "He's already got the upper hand!"

"But he hurt our friends…"

"And we'll make him pay for that!" Sarah assured him. "But first of all, let's prioritise actually getting out of this alive! Astro Zord, get us out of here!"

She spun the Power Star in her Star Blade as Brax prepared to attack again, only just narrowly avoiding being cut in half as she was beamed onto the Astro Zord. The others were beamed aboard before it sped away, rocking as Brax hit it with a power blast as it flew away.

"You cowards! Come back and face me like true Ninja Warriors!" He roared in triumph as they flew away.

Brax teleported away, appearing back on the Warrior Dome to a huge, thunderous and enthusiastic roar of approval from the audience. They started to chant his name in unison, interspersed with thunderous applause. Members of the audience started throwing tokens of their admiration onto the stage. Flowers, t-shirts, banners...Badonna let out a shrill shriek as she saw underwear and room keys starting to join the tributes being thrown onto the stage, rushing out onto the stage to Brax's side and grabbing onto him possessively. Brax kind of cast a side-ways glance her way, before ignoring her and going back to accepting his adulation. Cosmo performed a series of cartwheels and back flips onto the stage, ending with a back somersault, landing in front of him.

"Well, how about THAT folks! Brax seems to have fooled everyone! The audience, the Rangers, even ME!" Cosmo called out gleefully as he pumped up the audience. "Yesterday he looked like he couldn't fight off a cold, today he leaves the Power Rangers broken, demoralised, humiliated! Brax, do you have a few words for the audience?"

"I fooled EVERYONE!" He roared as he grabbed the microphone from Cosmo. "I could have destroyed those fools the first time I met them, but what would that prove? I wanted to lull them into a false sense of security, to lower their guard, to assume that I was just another loser like all those that have fallen before me! Now, they're at home, picking up the pieces of their shattered reputation!"

"Oh, Braxy! Isn't he BRILLIANT everyone?" Badonna declared. "And don't forget who brought him to you! Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you your next Galaxy Warriors Champion!"

"Uh...Badonna...he has to actually, you know, win at least one fight first." Cosmo gently reminded her. She just whipped her arm out of his grip.

"Merely a formality!" She responded angrily as she draped herself on Brax. "Let's hear it once more for Brax!"

Brax just ignored her, kind of going with it as he raised his sword aloft, accepting the cheers of the crowd. The Rangers had to be reeling from their defeat. Those that were still on their feet had been shown that there was little to nothing they could do against him. The next time he faced them, there would be no more tricks, no more pantomime. They would have a simple choice, hand over their power stars and the Nexus Prism or face their complete destruction.

Over at the school, the Astro Zord flew high overhead, using the clouds to cover its approach. It beamed the Rangers directly down into the lab. Mick and Redbot were already waiting with the first aid kit.

"What happened?" He asked as he rushed to Levi's side, checking on him. "Is everyone alright?"

"We're all breathing if that's what you mean." Brody groaned, trying to move, but getting a pained expression on his face and clutching his ribs, sitting back down. "OK, at least one of those is cracked."

"Can we have the other guy back? I think I preferred that one, the one that ran away crying." Sandy grumbled as her sister started to look over her.

"It was a setup, Brax totally played us." Sarah told them. "We fired our blasters at him but it didn't even faze him. He didn't even look like it tickled."

"Man, I can't believe we got suckered in by this." Calvin said as he helped Hayley onto an examination table for Redbot to start performing scans. "We treated him as a joke. I actually felt sorry for him...I was about to offer him money for his space taxi!"

"Alright, we get it, we were played for chumps!" Preston muttered as he held an ice-pack to his head. "Going over and over it isn't going to help."

"It's...it's just like the test. I didn't take it seriously." Sarah added dejectedly. "I didn't take it seriously; I just assumed it would be a piece of cake. I went to see that movie; I went to the mall with..."

She cut herself off and looked around her friends.

"...Uhhh...I went to the mall for smoothies. I've been thinking about everything BUT what I should have been." She said in a moment of clarity. She took a deep breath. "I've allowed myself to be distracted and it came back on me."

She turned to the others and looked to them.

"Guys, we got suckered in once, but we got lucky." Sarah declared.

"You call THIS lucky?" Emma asked her.

"Yeah, he let us live." Sarah told her. "Now, we have to teach him the exact same lesson straight back. He let us go because he thought we were beat. It's time we showed him that was the biggest mistake he could have ever made."

"But how?" Calvin asked her. "We threw everything at him but the Lion Fire Armour."

"Maybe not." Sarah said as her eyes rested on the workbench, which Mick still hadn't cleared off. She ran over, beginning to arrange the parts on the table.

"Sarah, this isn't the time to be messing with scraps and spares." Calvin told her.

"No, it's not. The time to do that has long since passed." She told them. "But if we work on this now...Cal, Mick, can you help me with this? Emma, check my programming, I've been having a problem with the coding, and it's not really my best area."

"Right." Emma said as she went to one of the computers.

"What about the rest of us?" Hayley asked.

"The rest of you...uh..." Sarah said. "You guys all rest up. We'll handle this."

Elsewhere in the school, Clint put Victor and Monty to work in the parking lot.

"Now, the way I see it, this school is kind of like a community all of its own. People who show pride in their community are happy and get on well. But there are some people who ruin it for everyone." Clint told them. "It is our job to correct people whose selfishness ruins the experience for everyone. I like to think of it as my way of making my little corner of the world a better place for everyone."

"That's great Clint!" Monty declared excitedly, eager to get started.

"So, how are we starting?" Victor asked him. "Shaking down ne'er do wells, looking for drug dealers, hauling in punks who..."

Victor's words tailed off as Clint handed him some trash bags, some latex gloves and a grabber stick. He handed Monty a citation pad.

"I want you to pick up all the trash in the yard and the parking lot." Clint told Victor. "Remember, put recyclables, the bottles, cans, paper and suchlike into green bags, and the rest into the red bags. Oh, that reminds me."

He pulled out some smaller bags and stuffed them in his breast pocket.

"What are those for?" Victor asked him.

"Animal...uh...leavings." Clint told him. "A lot of people don't like to leave their pets too long so they walk to school with them before sending them home. Other people cut through the school walking their pets. Not everyone is responsible."

He then looked to Monty and panned his hand over the parking lot.

"You on the other hand get to make sure that people are using the privilege of the parking lot responsibly." He told him. "If someone's over the lines or using more than one space, if they're using a restricted spot without a badge, write them up." Clint told him, pointing to the pad. "Write the licence plate here, their infraction here and sign here. If someone's left their car unlocked or has worn tyres or a busted light or something else that could be a problem for them later, just tick the advisory box here so that we know it's not a citation but a friendly little reminder to people to be a little more careful."

"You're not serious about this." Victor said, furrowing his brows. "When do we get to do locker searches? Break up fights? Run down troublemakers..."

"We'll get to that stuff soon enough." Clint declared cheerfully. "I believe in the butterfly effect method of managing things. We deal with the small things, maybe people won't build to the bigger stuff. Now, come see me when you're done! I have a date with a computer, checking the school's social media pages to give corrective responses to nasty posts."

As he strutted triumphantly away, like he was running the Pentagon or something, Victor and Monty just sighed and looked at each other.

"I thought we'd be doing something more interesting than this." Monty complained.

"Well, you heard the man, let's get the small stuff out the way." He muttered as he started wandering around, looking for trash.

Back in the lab, Emma was overseeing work on the Super Starblade. It was a project she'd had in mind for a while, but there was always just something else going on. She'd procrastinated on that like she had on so many other things.

Mick was working on some of the internal circuitry while Calvin was working on the blade itself. Pretty soon they'd be putting the final touches on assembling it. She stopped by Emma's station.

"How's the coding looking?" Sarah asked her.

"I found the problem." She told her. "I just had to straighten out a few lines, put in a couple of adapted codes. In fact, I think I think my latest tweak actually improved it."

"Improved it?" Sarah asked.

"Yeah, I managed to get around a little hurdle and now it should work with for all the Rangers instead of you having to individually program it for each one." She declared proudly.

"Good, great work Emma; I knew you were the right person for the job!" Sarah declared. "Mick, how's the board going?"

"I'm just about...there, done!" He said proudly as he backed away from it.

"Cool, Calvin, you ready to put this puppy together?" She asked him. Mick fixed the board into the middle of the blade, at which Calvin put the other pieces together.

"Looking good, looking good...there!" Calvin said as he finished. "Emma, is the code finished downloading?"

"Just finished now!" She told him.

"Nice work guys!" Sarah said as she picked it up, admiring their handiwork. She turned to the assembled team in the room, holding it out for them to see. "Guys, I'd like to introduce you to the latest weapon in our arsenal, the Super Starblade!"

She could see the others just staring at them.

"Sarah, this might just be the headache talking but...it's just a Starblade." Brody stated. "We've all already got those."

"Yeah, but can our other Starblades do THIS?" She asked, putting the Lion Fire Armour Star into it. She spun the star, at which they saw all the computers going wild.

"Whoa!" Hayley declared. "Are you guys seeing this?"

"The power levels just went past 800 percent and they're still rising!" Preston said excitedly.

"By channelling the power of the Lion Fire Armour Star through the Super Starblade instead of the armour, it can reach power levels way beyond even the Lion Fire Armour!" She told them.

"So, it's like a risk/reward thing?" Levi asked. "Lose the protection but gain the power?"

"That's exactly what it is!" Sarah answered. "And thanks to Emma here, it's able to be used by any of us! So the first one of us that gets a shot can send Brax packing!"

"I like it!" Brody answered as she powered down the blade and handed it to him. He inspected it with a smile. "Now all we need is for Brax to come back for round two."

Just then, the alarms went off. Redbot checked the computer for scans.

"Maybe you should be careful what you wish for." Redbot told him. "That's Brax, and it looks like he's looking for trouble!"

"Rangers! Come out and face me!" Brax called out loudly. "You've already seen you're no match for me! I've already crushed most of you! Bring me the Nexus Prism and your Power Stars and I'll spare your lives and your pitiful planet!"

"This guy's really getting on my nerves." Brody declared. "Who says we show him how hard it is to put a Ranger down for good?"

"Wait!" Sarah called out as they filed towards the door. "We COULD do that...or...we could give him a little taste of his own medicine."

She looked to the others with a devious little look on her face.

"Brax likes to play games." Sarah told them. "Let's show him how we play to win."


	7. Playing the Player

In the school parking lot, Victor and Monty were going through their chores as they saw the Rangers loading up their trucks and pulling out in a hurry.

"Hey, they were going pretty fast." Monty told him. "Where do you suppose they're going?"

"Somewhere important no doubt." Victor answered. "You know they'd never risk being late for morning classes if they can help it. It's probably…you know…their other job."

"I should write them up, but it doesn't feel right if they're on…you know…their other job." Monty answered as he looked to the corner of the parking lot. "Hey, check that out!"

He pointed over to the corner of the parking lot, where a guy was looking around, like he was making sure no one was coming. He was standing by a truck, which had been abandoned rather carelessly in the check marks by the loading entrance to the school.

"He's illegally parked!" Monty declared. Victor just looked to him.

"Really Monty? That's what you're worried about?" Victor said, gesturing to Monty to follow him. They both hid behind some cars and started to make their way closer. "He looks really shifty, don't you think?"

"Well, yeah, because he doesn't want to get a ticket." Monty replied. Just then, another guy showed up. He was wearing a hoodie under a leather jacket, with the hood pulled up. He went to the back of the truck and shook hands with the other stranger.

"Monty, start recording this." Victor told him. "Make sure you get the licence plate."

Monty pulled out his phone and started recording. Victor watched as the guy with the van opened the back, showing the one in the hoodie a bunch of buckets. He opened one, letting him look inside. The man seemed to nod, content with what he had seen, before pulling out some money and starting to count it out.

"What is going on here?" Monty asked.

"Really? Are we watching the same thing?" Victor asked him. "It's clearly a deal!"

"A deal?" Monty asked. "What kind of deal?"

"What kind of deal gets done in a shady corner of a back-yard parking lot?" Victor asked as he shook his head in derision. Monty just gasped.

"You're not serious…"

"With Ace gone, people are going to have to get their supply from somewhere." Victor commented. "I just can't believe they're being so brazen about it."

"It's sickening!" Monty agreed, wrinkling his nose in disgust.

"Alright, he's making his move." Victor said as the man unloaded the buckets from the back of the van, loading them onto a trolley. He saw them coming towards them, yelling and ran for the van, getting in and speeding away so fast he didn't even stop to shut the doors. "Forget him! We've got his licence plates, but we can't let that other guy take that filth into the school!"

"What the..?" The guy in the hoodie managed to utter, shortly before Victor tackled him to the ground. He wrestled him onto his face, twisting his arm up his back.

"Hey, what the hell…?"

"Alright dirtbag, just rest easy there and we won't have to hurt you!" Victor warned him.

"You idiot! What the hell are you…?"

"Shut up!" Victor told him. "Monty, search the guy!"

"Hey, get off me you morons!" He protested. "I'm not doing anything…"

"Oh yeah, then what do you call this?" Monty asked, finding a cloth roll in his back pocket. He pulled out a long, sharp knife. "This looks pretty dangerous!"

"If you two idiots would just…"

"Save it for the Principal!" Victor snapped. "Monty, bring the buckets! We wouldn't want to leave this junk lying around."

With that, he pulled the man to his feet and started to frog-march him into the school. Monty put the canvas roll on the top of the buckets and grabbed the handle, wheeling the trolley with him.

Meanwhile, Brax was in the Executive Lounge of the Warrior Dome, taking in the glory and the adulation of his recent success. Badonna was ensuring that whatever he wanted was delivered. Brax, for the most part though, was ignoring her, instead taking in the adoration of those fans that had been granted access to the Executive Lounge.

Badonna just sat, stewing in the corner as people came to him for autographs and selfies. Brax had gotten quite a following from the notoriously fickle fan base of the Warrior Dome. While every warrior that lasted any length of time had a strong, loyal following, the fact was most of the money came in from fair-weather fans who followed whoever was the latest big thing to hit the scene. A warrior with a particular reputation, a cool new technique, a shiny or spectacular weapon…there were a million and one reasons someone who proclaimed themselves to be a life-long die-hard fan of one warrior would forget they existed the moment another came along and started racking up wins. Not that Cosmo cared in the slightest. He didn't care if someone had watched Galaxy Warriors for decades or if they only bought their subscription that night, as long as the money was rolling in, that was all that mattered to him.

She sat and watched for so long as he dealt with a crowd of fans, quietly boiling under the surface, her mask hiding an expression of barely-restrained rage as some fawned over him. As he finished taking a selfie with a couple of fans, one of them gave him a picture.

"I drew that for you." She told him nervously. "My…uh…numbers on the back…my…personal number…"

"Alright, that's quite enough!" Badonna snapped, flapping her arms around dementedly. "Brax has no more time to see fans today!"

"But I have plenty of…"

"He has to prepare!" She barked, shoving some of the fans away. "Everyone out, OUT! We can't disturb an athlete of his stature while he prepares for his next battle!"

She had security rush the fans out of the Executive Lounge, before returning to Brax's side.

"There you go champ! I know you were just too polite to tell them." She cooed as she draped herself on his shoulder. "I'm sure you just want to warm up or have a quiet moment to rest or…have a healthy snack! Look, I had this imported just now! The finest fruits from…"

"Brax, look at this!" Tynamonn interrupted them. Badonna just snorted bad-temperedly, glaring at him.

"This better be important!" She warned him. "I'd hate for Brax to be bothered by any 'little' thing."

"Oh, I think this is important alright." Cosmo told her. "The Rangers have shown up!"

"So, they dared to show their faces huh?" She asked derisively as she looked to the screen. Sure enough, the Rangers all appeared on the screen. They parked up in a lot in the city docks. She could see them disembarking from their trucks and beginning to lift something out of the back of Nitro. "What are they up to?"

"There's one way to find out." Cosmo said as he took control of one of the buzz-cams, bringing it down into the area, landing it on the hood of Brody's truck. The Red Ranger looked to the others and gestured to them to bring the item into view.

"Why aren't they morphed?" Brax asked.

"Oh, they do that all the time." Cosmo said dismissively.

"Brax, we know you're listening." Brody said into the Buzz-Cam. "It's become clear to us that you're way stronger than we first thought. In fact, it's clear that we're no match for you."

He snapped his fingers, at which Sarah came into view. She was carrying a large briefcase. She opened it, showing them a collection of Power Stars, and unconverted Ninja Stars. Hayley opened another case, showing the remaining chunks of the Super Ninja Steel that they hadn't gotten around to turning into Ninja Stars yet.

"We're ready to surrender." Brody told him, going to the large item as Levi and Calvin held it upright. He whipped off a blanket, exposing the Nexus Prism. "We know what you want. We're willing to hand over the Nexus Prism and all the Super Ninja Steel we have if you'll spare our planet. We'll be waiting for your answer."

"Ha! Look at that! They're even weaker than we thought!" Brax sneered in disgust. "Just when I was beginning to respect them. I was starting to think they might be worthy adversaries. Now I'm not sure they even deserve a death at my hands!"

"Braxy, my champion, they undoubtedly know when they're beaten." She said as she started to stroke his shoulders. Cosmo and Wrench just looked to each other and whispered 'Braxy?' in disgust. "But the Rangers are smart. They're sneaky and full of tricks, you should be careful."

"I had considered that this was too easy." Brax told her. "Just as well I'm not picky. Just because they're not WORTHY of a death at my hands doesn't mean I won't grant them one. Surrender or no surrender."

Back at the school, Principal Hastings was just finishing up her phone call when the door burst open and Victor all but threw the man onto her desk.

"What in the world?" She asked. "Victor, Monty, what is the meaning of this?"

"We just found this man at the back of the school, acting very suspiciously." Victor told her. "We made a citizen's arrest."

"Clint, could you come in here?" Principal Hastings asked over the intercom. Clint came to the office quickly, finding the scene unfolding.

"What is this?" Clint asked. "What's going on?"

"We just found this man acting very suspiciously…"

"Would you two idiots just listen for two seconds?" The man in the hoodie asked.

"Save it for the authorities!" Victor snapped. "He bought all of this out the back of a van."

"With cash…LOTS of cash!" Monty added. Principal Hastings and Clint just looked to each other.

"Victor…"

"We figured now that Ace is out of the picture, the kids have to be getting their gear from somewhere, it looks like this guy moved in to take over…"

"I'm really sorry about this." Principal Hastings just sighed, shaking her head as she looked to the man in the hoodie.

"You're…apologising to him?" Victor asked. "But he was dealing in the school!"

"Dealing?" The man asked. "Is that what you idiots think I was doing?"

"Why else would you be acting so suspiciously?" Monty asked him, grabbing one of the buckets. "If you're not dealing, why don't you explain THIS?"

Before anyone could stop him, he ripped off the lid of the bucket and dumped a slimy, heaping mass on Principal Hastings' desk, causing everyone to jump back. Victor and Monty just looked to it in shock.

"Fish?" Victor asked. "You were buying fish?"

The man in the hoodie pulled down his hood, revealing himself to be the school cook.

"Mr…Mr Wilson?" Monty stammered.

"Yes, and I was buying some stock for the kitchen!" He told them. "One of the local fishermen brings his over-catch here where I buy it for cash and the school reimburses me later! It's one of the ways I help stretch the budget a little further!"

"Over-catch?" Monty asked.

"Yeah, ships get charged a duty for anything they catch over their allowance. Rather than throw it into the harbour where it does no one any good, this guy would sneak it off the ship and sell it to me instead." Mr Wilson explained. "Or at least he did! Now that you to morons startled him, he's going to think the cops are onto him! He's not going to come back!"

"But…you had this!" Monty said, holding up the knife and the canvas roll. Mr Wilson slammed it down, before unrolling it, showing a whole range of knives, and a couple of other tools like a sharpening steel and a vegetable peeler.

"Oh…" Was all Monty could say.

"If that's everything, I have to go and make some chowder before all of this goes to waste." He snorted, before glaring at Clint. "And figure out a new supplier for my seafood thanks to your two clowns!"

As he stormed out, Victor and Monty started to stammer out excuses, only to be silenced by a gesture from Principal Hastings.

"Just…get this mess cleaned up." She told them. "I'm going for a walk to calm down. This better be gone by the time I'm back."

As she left, Victor looked to Clint.

"I'm sorry, I thought…"

"No, never mind, we can go over some more training once we're done here." He responded. "In the meantime, go get the cleaning supplies."

Over at the docks, the Rangers were waiting for Brax to show up. They'd delivered the message, so it was only a matter of time before he came.

They all snapped around as Brax appeared in a flash of light.

"So, you gutless Rangers finally showed your faces!" Brax taunted them. "I was beginning to think I was going to have to tear this city apart looking for you!"

"No, we wouldn't force you to hurt anyone else to find us." Levi assured him. "We can see when we're beat."

"We don't want anyone else to get hurt." Brody told him. "That's why we've come to turn over the Nexus Prism. All we ask is that you take it and go."

"I have to say, I'm disappointed. I'd heard so many stories about you Rangers I was hoping for a lot more of a fight from you." He declared. "I was looking forward to grinding your faces to dust."

"You have what you want." Sarah told him, gesturing to the two open cases and the Nexus Prism. "Please, just take them and go. We won't try and stop you."

"You know, this is going smoothly." Brax said as he started to make his way towards the Rangers. "A little TOO smoothly! The one thing I keep hearing about you Rangers is how you NEVER give up!"

He powered up his sword as the Rangers all covered up, sending out a power wave, which passed straight through them, leaving nothing but the burning remains of straw scarecrows where they had been standing. The Nexus Prism and the cases also disappeared.

"Just as I thought!" Brax roared. "You think you can use my trick against me?"

"Maybe not!" Brody called out as a curtain fell, revealing him, morphed and ready for action. "But it got you out in the open! Third time definitely won't be the charm for you!"

"Time to crush you!" Brax declared as he rushed for Brody. He was, however, sent tumbling to the ground as a hole opened up, sending him tumbling down into it.

"OK, that's my part done!" Sandy called out.

"Next part of the plan!" Sarah added as she, Calvin, Preston and Levi all put Power Stars into their blasters. "Whiplash attack!"

Brax could only flounder as they whipped downwards from the edges of the pit. With nowhere else to go, he had no option but to leap upwards straight through their attacks. It took something of a toll on him, and he was smoking from several of his injuries.

"Is that all you've got?" He asked.

"Not quite!" Levi assured him, rushing towards him, activating his Storm Star. "Ninja Tornado Strike!"

Brax was swept upwards in the attack, along with the Gold Ranger, who struck him repeatedly, but concentrated on his sword arm, eventually forcing Brax to drop his weapon. Brax ended up landing in a heap on the ground, his weapon landing several feet away from him.

"You Rangers are cowards! All tricks and deception! You aren't true warriors!" He roared.

"Coming from a hypocrite like you, we take that as a compliment!" Brody said as he summoned the Super Starblade. He offered it to Sarah. "Well, this is your show, you want to do the honours?"

"With pleasure!" Sarah declared. "Lion Fire FRENZY!"

The blade burst into a white-hot flame as Sarah rushed towards him. Brax could do nothing as she brought it across him again and again, hitting him with unimaginable power.

Brax screamed in anguish as he fell to the ground, prone and awaiting the final blow. Sarah was about to deliver it, he disappeared in a flash of light, teleported from harms' way. Sarah's Super Starblade imbedded in the ground right where he had been lying.

"Damn it, we almost had him!" She exclaimed.

"Guys, look at that!" Sandy yelled, pointing upwards. The Rangers all looked up in time to see a Skullgator appearing, then another, and another. In total, four Skullgators appeared before the portals stopped.

"I'm guessing Badonna was a little protective about her new crush." Hayley commented. "I've never seen so many Skullgators at once."

"I didn't even know they could send that many." Preston gulped.

"Maybe she needs to check the sticky-keys setting on her control panel?" Levi suggested. "We're going to need a lot of firepower to take care of this."

"Thankfully we've got plenty." Brody stated. "I'll take the Lion Fire Zord. Levi, get out the Bullrider Megazord. Hayley, Calvin, you take the Ninja Steel Megazord, the rest of you take the Blaze Megazord."

"Sounds like a plan." Preston replied. "They want to bring in the big guns, we can do the same."

Back at the school, Victor and Monty were finishing cleaning up the office when Clint came back with Principal Hastings. She looked around the office, inspecting it to ensure they had done a good job.

"We've opened the windows and sprayed air freshener." Victor grovelled. "We sponged down the carpet and we cleaned up, we've got it aired out, it shouldn't smell like…"

"Fine, Victor, it's fine." She sighed.

"We're really sorry." Monty snivelled. "We'll do anything, we'll wash the dishes, we'll help in the kitchen…"

"Actually, Mr Wilson's asked me to promise that you two WON'T go anywhere near the kitchen from now on." She informed them.

"Whatever you say." Victor said apologetically. "We're really sorry, we thought we were helping…"

"Just, try not to take things too far in future." Principal Hastings told them. "But hopefully you'll have a little more back-up in future. I've just interviewed someone to help out with security. He starts on Monday."

"You know my motto, every little helps." Clint told her. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I think I should debrief my over-eager deputies here."

"Fine." She said, waving them off. As they left, Principal Hastings looked to the office.

"Well, if they ever want to be cleaners, they did a pretty decent job here." She commented. "Now, if only I could find someone to do something about our filing system."


	8. A Different Blend

Up on the Warrior Dome, Brax stormed into his chambers, drinks dripping down his body and pieces of popcorn and other snacks snagged in his clothing as he trudged away from booing fans, furious with the outcome of the battle. He had believed he had the Rangers right where he wanted them. He had seen straight through their ruse, and even if he hadn't, he had no intention of allowing his opponents to go with their lives. He was always intending to destroy them even if their surrender was genuine. That said, he had come to learn some time ago that very few ever genuinely surrendered. They just...begged for a reprieve until they could figure out a way to come back and exact revenge at a later date.

He had underestimated them and that had almost cost him his life, but for now, it felt like the battle had cost him something far more. Brax, one of the most feared warriors in existence, had been plucked from oblivion live on television. His humiliating rescue had been broadcast across most of the known universe! Brax had pulled his false weakness gambit a few times, but there was simply no way anyone could be in any doubt that if Badonna had been even a fraction of a second slower, the Pink Ranger would have destroyed him. He hadn't run, he didn't have a choice in his retreat, but in the eyes of the universe, he had run like a coward.

"Get away, get away! No interviews!" Badonna screamed as she and Tynamonn came into his chambers, shoving past an irate crowd. "Get out of here you vultures!"

The doors slammed shut behind her and sealed as irate fans pounded on the door while security tried to restrain them. She went to Brax's side.

"Braxy, are you...?"

"You humiliated me!" He roared as he threw her hand off him. "You made me look like a weakling in front of the entire universe!"

"But...but...I was just..."

"Now, champ, you have to realise, Badonna was just doing what she thought was right." Tynamonn added to the protest. Tynamonn was his manager, and keeping Brax healthy enough to fight was in his best interests in the long run. Dead fighters didn't get re-matches!

"I didn't SUBMIT!" Brax yelled as he grabbed a table, flipping it clean across the room. "But to all those slack-jawed, drooling morons that watch your show all they saw is me running away!"

"But Brax...!"

"I could have survived!" He declared. "I am not as easy to destroy as you think! But you pulled me out. Now the Rangers think I'm weak..."

"Yes, yes they do!" Badonna told him. "And what better way to set yourself up for your comeback?"

Brax thought about this for a moment. She had a point; his fake injury gambit did have the drawback of only working on an opponent once. Once he had faked an injury and come back, they would be watching for him pulling the same trick again. Of course, so far he tended not to need a third shot at an opponent so it was largely a non-issue, but if he ran away crying from an injury once, then it wasn't as though enemies would be quick to believe him if he tried it again. This way though, when it looked like he was moments from certain destruction and pulled out without his consent, it looked a lot more legitimate as a move born out of panic.

"Perhaps...perhaps you're right." He mused.

"And while I'm sure you would have survived their pitiful little attack, what with you being so strong and muscular and handsome..."

"What?" Brax asked.

"Uh...I mean, with you being so courageous and tough, it would still have taken you a while to recover from injury." She told him. "But this way, you can get right back to training for you re-match."

"Yes, that way when I return I'll be in the best shape of my career!" He declared. "Then there will be no one that can stand in my way!"

"Anything you need Braxy, anything at all, be sure that I'll make sure you get it. No expense spared!" Badonna told him as she backed towards the door. She opened it quickly, barging her way out before sealing it behind her before any fans could get in. Tynamonn looked to Brax.

"You shouldn't dwell on this disappointment champ." Tynamonn reassured him.

"No, that's exactly what I'll do." Brax snapped in response. "My humiliation will push me to work harder than I've ever worked before. By the time I return, the Rangers will regret the day they ever heard my name!"

With that, he sat on the floor.

"Now, leave me alone little man." Brax ordered him. "I need to meditate upon my defeat, and think how best to translate its lessons into my future victory!"

Back in Summer Cove, the Rangers were in the lab after their battle, having defeated the Skullgators. They'd never seen the Warrior Dome throw so much at them all at once, but by now they had an impressive arsenal of their own. Still, it was the first time they'd needed to throw it all out at the same time.

"I'll tell you one thing, that Brax is really strong." Brody remarked. "It's a shame we didn't get to finish him off."

"Maybe this is the last we'll see of him?" Preston suggested. "Like, now we've straight up defeated him he's learned his lesson?"

Everyone in the room just stared at him.

"Yeah, I know, wishful thinking." He sighed.

"But still, we know he's stronger than he let on, so we'll never let him catch us with our guard down again." Sarah stated. "If he comes back, we'll give him everything we have, both barrels."

"And now we've got that new Super Starblade, we know we've got something that will get the job done." Levi said, inspecting the Super Starblade. "This thing's pretty amazing, even I'm itching to give it a go."

"Still, I kind of feel like I've been taking a lot of things for granted." Sarah told them. "I'm sorry I was making a big deal about how easy I found that test."

"Sarah, it's alright." Brody told her. "We all took Brax lightly, even I did."

"It's one of the oldest tricks in the book and we swallowed it whole." Levi agreed. "I've still got the lumps to prove it."

"I...don't mean just that test." Sarah said, taking a deep breath. "When I got hit with that second math test, it showed me something. Just because I found one test easy doesn't mean I'll find all of them easy. I was embarrassed and I was frustrated and it really showed me something. It made me feel really crummy and I just..."

She turned towards Calvin with an apologetic look on her face.

"I'm really sorry Calvin." She told him. "I know it was humiliating when I didn't do as well as I wanted to and...I couldn't help but thinking I knew you didn't find it as easy as I did, but instead of listening to you I just kept talking about how easy I thought it was and...It had to feel like I was rubbing your face in it and that's not a good look. It was a crappy thing to do to a friend. I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's alright." Calvin told her. "But, I appreciate you saying it."

"So, now that's all over, how does anyone feel about seeing that stupid train movie Sarah's been going on about?" Brody asked. Sarah just groaned.

"Oh my God, will you leave it alone! It was the worst!" Sarah complained. "Worst ten bucks I ever spent!"

"Besides, I think I'd quite like to get some training time in." Brody replied as he flicked a glance in the direction of the training uniforms. "What do you say?"

"I say I've always believed in the seven P's." Hayley responded. They all just stared at her. "You know, the seven P's? Prior Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance?"

They all just groaned and rolled their eyes as she said this, before heading to the uniforms to get changed. Emma was starting to pack up when Brody tapped her on the shoulder.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" He asked her.

"Uh...you guys are training?" She asked.

"Yeah, you're one of us too now remember." Levi replied with a smile. "We've got to look out for our little sister haven't we?"

"Actually I wanted to talk to Emma and Sandy..."

"Can it wait Mick? Brody asked him. "We got caught with our pants down once and I really don't want that to happen again."

"Can you NOT talk about your pants being down around me?" Emma said with a shudder. "Its a visual I really don't need!"

As the team filed out into the yard to train, Mick just watched them go.

"Alright Redbot, let's do a diagnostic on the weapons and Zords." Mick told him. "They aren't the only ones that need to be prepared."

On the Warrior Dome, Wrench and Cosmo slipped into Cosmo's office to get some privacy, sealing the doors and activating a surveillance jammer as they did. Cosmo activated a hologram, at which they both knelt as Lord Drakkon appeared before them.

"This better be important." He warned them. "I have a lot of matters to attend to."

"My lord, I'm afraid I must report some troubling developments with Badonna." Cosmo told him. "She is..."

"I am aware of the debacle with the battle today." Drakkon told them.

"It's not just the battle, she's...she's...running the entire show around her schoolgirl crush!" He screamed incredulously. "She's spent an absolute fortune on Brax and he's delivered us nothing!"

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Drakkon said as he leant forward, tenting his fingers. "The Rangers have seen his power, they have to be worried about a possible return battle. While they're focusing on him, they're not focusing on their true threat. Us!"

"But...but..."

"Do you doubt me?" Drakkon cut off Cosmo. Cosmo immediately threw up his hands.

"No, no of course not!" He squealed. "It's just..."

"Good. Now, it will be a while before Brax is ready to enact his revenge. My latest warrior should be with you soon." Drakkon told him. "In the meantime, I have something in mind for you!"

"Me?" Wrench stammered, seeing Drakkon pointing directly at him. Drakkon snapped his fingers, at which a device appeared in the middle of the floor in front of Wrench.

"I understand you have your own issue with the Pink Ranger." Drakkon reminded him. This was putting it mildly. He'd flipped out when he realised that one of the people that helped the Amber Beach team defeat his last employer had become a Ranger when he came back with a new master. He had fought with the Rangers before, but the last time he did, Sarah had left him quite literally in pieces, and in desperate need of replacement of a significant portion of his body. He'd done a lot of upgrades, but he still longed for an opportunity to square things up with the Pink Ranger. He picked up the device, looking at it.

"What is it?" He asked.

"It is a power transfer device. One of my allies created it."

He gestured behind him, where a shadowy figure came into view, but stayed far enough in the shadows that he couldn't be seen as more than a silhouette.

"It will allow you to channel incredible power." The shadowy figure told him. "It should take you a little while to install it in your systems, but I'm sure someone of even your abilities should figure it out by the time Blammo has had his fun with the Rangers."

"In my..." Wrench said. "You want me to install this INSIDE me?"

"When you can charge up with enough energy to defeat the Rangers, you'll thank me." The stranger assured him, before disappearing.

"My ally has assured me you'll be able to install it yourself." Drakkon said, before reaching a hand to the broken hilt of Saba. "Unless you believe it is beyond your capabilities."

"N...n...no Lord Drakkon!" Wrench stammered, hugging the device tightly. "I'll get to work on it right away! Thank you!"

"Thank me by destroying the Rangers and clearing the way for my invasion." Drakkon told him. "In the meantime, Blammo should be arriving any time. Make sure you treat him with the respect you would afford me. Otherwise I will take it as a personal insult."

He shut off the communications link, at which Cosmo and Wrench looked to each other, before wordlessly scrambling away in a panic to prepare Drakkon's plans.

Back at the school, the team came back in after training, laughing and joking.

"Oh man, that was a blast!" Calvin commented.

"What can I tell you? It's always fun to try something new." Levi responded.

"It's also fun when people aren't surprise-attacking you all day!" Sandy responded. "But I have to say, those reversals were pretty nice!"

"Hey, we know Brax likes his swords." Brody assured her. "I figured giving everyone a few lessons on how to counter swords might not go amiss."

"Guys, do you need to rush off right away?" Mick asked them.

"Well, we should probably shower before we head back to class." Sarah chuckled. "I mean it's not as bad as when Monty has beans but I think the teachers would appreciate it if we didn't stink out their classrooms."

"It's just, I wanted to ask Sandy and Emma about something." Mick told them.

"You did?" Sandy asked. "You think you figured out what that lightning was?"

"Uh...not quite...well, maybe...but...well..." Mick said, not entirely sure how to answer. "OK, the lightning, I don't have any idea how you do it, but I think it might have something to do with your Power Star."

"Really?" Sandy asked. "Well, that's a shocker because I know I was blowing people away with lightning blasts all the time before I got it."

She noticed the others weren't laughing.

"Sorry." She responded. Mick pulled up a display.

"This is the readout from the Gold Power Star." Mick told her. "I was analysing it a while back. You can see its readout here, including its chemical makeup, density, chemical properties..."

"I've still no idea why all of you guys get cool extra powers and I don't." Levi said, before shrugging. "Maybe it figures I don't need any extras."

"Well...I think there might be more to it, but...we'll come back to that." Mick told him.

"You think you found something extra in my Power Star?" Levi asked.

"Uh...more like Sarah's new weapon inspired me and..." He responded, before shaking his head. "...later. OK, one thing at a time. So, as you can see, these are its properties here."

He then pulled up the scans of Sandy's power star.

"And this, this is the scan of yours Sandy." Mick told her. They all just stared at it.

"It looks the same." Brody said.

"No, not quite, there's...it's...is this right Mick?" Sarah asked. "Sandy, your Power Star is made of a different alloy."

"A different alloy?" Calvin asked. "But how?"

"There's an extra component, another substance in it right here." Sarah told them, pointing to a line on its chemical makeup, but then tracing her hand to the scan of the Gold Power Star where that same line was missing.

"Well, what is it?" Brody asked.

"I don't know." Mick answered honestly. "The only thing I know is it isn't on the periodic table. Or...any periodic table that I know of."

"Other periodic tables?" Hayley asked.

"There are a lot of planets, it stands to reason not all of them have the same elements." Preston stated. "How far out did you search?"

"I've not found a planet anywhere in the Milky Way that has anything that is anything like this." Mick told them.

"But how would that get here?" Brody asked. "Sandy, you said you got the ninja star that turned into your power star from the wall of the barn."

"Yeah..." She said a little nervously.

"We made that out of Super Ninja Steel." Brody recalled. "There was nothing else in it, we made it ourselves."

Sandy and Emma looked to each other, before Sandy took a seat.

"What if...there was something other than your Ninja Star that went into the Nexus Prism?" She asked him.

"That would explain it." Mick replied. "Why, what else went in?"

"You know how we were watching you guys for a while?" Emma asked. "Well, we might have been spectators in a couple of your battles. One in particular we got a little closer to the action than we intended."

"OK?" Levi asked.

"Well, we managed to get a hold of a little souvenir." Sandy replied. "It was one of the times you guys were fighting that scary, demon looking guy in the green armour."

"Psycho Green?" Sarah asked. Hayley noticeably shuddered.

"Well, a piece of his armour chipped off. I kept it because, uh, well, I'm not even sure why I kept it." Sandy told them. "But when I took that Ninja Star out the wall, it kind of joined with the piece of his armour and flew into the Nexus Prism."

"So, the extra ingredient in your Ninja Power Star is whatever Psycho Green's armour was made of?" Calvin asked her.

"Wait, that makes sense." Sarah stated. "Guys, don't you remember? Psycho Green liked to throw green lightning around the place."

"So, you have the ability to do that?" Brody asked. "So, why can't you do it on command?"

"Maybe she just doesn't have control of it yet." Preston suggested. "I mean, we all know the trouble I had with my magic to begin with."

"And the less said about all those voices I heard the better." Hayley groaned. "I swear I thought I was going crazy until I figured out who was talking to me."

"Well, however it works, at least now we know how it happened." Levi replied. "Now the only question is, how do you control it?"

"That is a really good question!" Brody answered. "But one we're going to need to figure out later. If we don't shower now, the other kids are not going to sit anywhere near us in shop class!"

"Oooh, yeah, you've got a point there." Sarah answered, sniffing her clothes. "See you in a few Mick?"

"Sure things guys." Mick replied as they all filed out, heading for the showers.


	9. Weekend Activities

The weekend came, and while normally it was a time of rest for most, the team had a few things keeping them occupied. While normally they'd find something to do together, some of them had a few things they had left on the back-burner that had really been neglected and could do with some attention.

Hayley was never this anxious about going to her mother's place. Nor either of her parents' place. Aaron and Laura had divorced before she was in High School, and had shared custody all that time. Going from one house to the other was now pretty much routine for her. Unfortunately, though, she hadn't actually been back to her mom's house since Trevor had been allowed to come home.

Aaron accompanied her as far as the front doorstep. He could see that she was reluctant to ring the doorbell to announce her arrival.

"Are you alright?" He asked her. "If you'd like…"

"No, I came this far." She said, pressing the doorbell. She took a deep breath as she waited for her mom. She didn't have much to pack, she only really needed to take school supplies like her books and her tablet between the two homes. By now she had pretty significant amounts of her clothes in both homes. It did make the to-and-fro moving from week to week a little simpler. Laura answered the door.

"Hayley, wonderful to see you." Laura said, hugging her daughter and taking her backpack from her. "Aaron, you're looking good."

"Thank you." He replied. "You too."

"Have you…lost weight?" Laura asked, inspecting him. Aaron was never going to get offered a modelling contract, but one of the things that had changed is that he did now take a lot better care of himself. Since he'd gotten together with Maxine, he'd started going to the gym with her, she'd shown him how to cook. Aaron was so obsessive about his work; he did have a bad habit of relying on ready-meals and instant noodles and suchlike.

"I'm taking a little better care of myself these days." He told her.

"Is Maxine with you?" She asked. "Is she in the car?"

"I don't have a car." He told her. "I've never gotten around to getting another one after the last one died. I really only go between my apartment, the university and the aquarium while I'm in town. I figured there's not much point in me owning one these days."

"Oh, well, that's good." She answered. "It's a shame about Maxine though. I was hoping that you both might want to stay for lunch."

"Uh…I'm uh…"

"Trevor's out the back with the barbecue." She told him. "I think we've got that lamb you like."

"That's a really nice offer but…I should probably be getting back." Aaron told her. "Maxine has an appointment with the physio."

"Oh, well…give her our best." Laura told him. "Come on in Hayley, I'll just put your bag aside."

As she closed the door, Hayley looked to her.

"Mom, I'm sorry I didn't come around earlier." Hayley told her. "I had a lot on and…"

"I understand sweetheart, it's a busy time for you." She answered. "I was hoping you could be there for Trevor's hearing but, I understand."

"So, how did it go?" Hayley asked her. She kind of knew what the answer was likely to be but she hadn't gotten around to broaching the subject.

"He's been let go." Laura told her. "The department wanted to distance themselves from him."

"I'm…I'm really sorry to hear that." Hayley replied sympathetically. She didn't doubt for a moment that he was likely to be fired. The fact was that there were significant numbers of people in the city who already had a somewhat less than favourable view of the police department. Anyone that risked bringing trust in the department into question was a liability they couldn't risk. Trevor might not really have been in control of Psycho Green, but that didn't mean there weren't a lot of people who had their doubts. "I know he really loved that job."

"It's all political." She muttered. "There are people in that department that should be behind bars instead of wearing badges and they fire him for something that isn't even his…"

"How is he?" Hayley asked. Laura just sighed.

"He could really do with his family around him." She responded. Hayley just nodded.

"So, I guess we should probably head out there then." Hayley concluded. "Say, did you get the coleslaw I like?"

Elsewhere, Sarah was in her workshop, tinkering with her hoverboard. She was just cleaning and lubricating some components and recharging her battery, but it was still something that was taking a lot longer than it normally should have. She just couldn't bring herself to concentrate.

She didn't notice as the door opened behind her. Calvin saw her staring at her hoverboard, a dreamy expression on her face as she just stood and gaped, like her brain had left her body. He just couldn't resist the opportunity, and gesturing to Sandy and Preston to be quiet, he crept up towards her, coming right up behind her, looking over her shoulder.

"You know, that works better if you actually put it IN the engine." He told her. Sarah jumped in fright, accidentally hitting him under the chin with her shoulder, causing him to stagger away. She spun around, backing into the workbench and knocking a whole bunch of parts onto the floor. She put a hand over her heart.

"Calvin!" She shrieked. "You gave me a heart attack!"

"I think he learned his lesson." Preston chuckled as he patted the Yellow Ranger on the shoulder while he checked his jaw to make sure he hadn't lost any teeth.

"Jeez, highly strung much?" Calvin asked her.

"Sorry, I was just, uh…" She said, trying to think of what to say. "I was kind of lost in thought."

"I'll say, you didn't hear us ring the doorbell. Your dad had to let us in." Preston told her.

"What are you guys doing here?" She asked them.

"We were just going to head to the basketball courts." Calvin told her. "We were wondering if you wanted to come with us."

"Really?" Sarah asked. "I thought we were all taking some time this weekend."

"Well, truth be told, Hayley's kind of doing a whole thing with her mom this weekend." Calvin reminded her. "I did offer to go with her, but she thought it might look a little like we were ganging up on Trevor and, I just kind of felt like I was at a loose end."

"Same here." Sandy said, holding up a hand. "Emma may drive me nuts, but with her spending the weekend with her dad and her brothers, I kind of just wanted someone to hang out with."

"So, how about it?" Preston asked her as he started to clear up the parts that had knocked onto the floor, putting them up on the bench. "You want to go shoot a few hoops?"

"Well…sure, why not?" She asked. "I wasn't making much progress here. Maybe a break would do me some good."

Meanwhile, over in Millport, Dane was waiting in his house, fidgeting nervously. He glanced over at the clock once more, but it hadn't advanced any in the thirty seconds or so since he had last checked in.

He had his rod and his tackle box waiting next to him, he had packed them hours ago. He hadn't been able to sleep much the previous night, but the several cups of strong tea coursing through his veins was seeing to that. He was wringing his hands and his feet just wouldn't settle as he waited for them.

He'd spoken to his kids since he had returned from his search, but only briefly. They'd exchanged some e-mails and phone calls, but things had kept them from coming back. Brody was still staying with Levi, something he wasn't sure was likely to change any time soon. He had a lot to make up to his two sons, presuming he ever could, but he was grateful that they were at least speaking to him now. He felt like he was getting to know them all over again in a lot of ways. It was hard to think they didn't feel like that was exactly what they were doing with him. So many secrets and lies that had been unearthed after so many years had to leave them doubting what if anything, they knew about him was real. However, while re-acquainting himself with his sons had him worried, it was getting to know Emma that truly terrified him.

He had only met her once. Levi had introduced them, something of a surprise for both of them. He could still remember seeing her for the first time. She looked so much like her mother, Mariko, that it stunned him. They had talked for a little bit, but between neither of them really having much idea what to say to each other and her needing to get back to her family, they hadn't really had much time to get to know each other.

He had managed to arrange a time for them to get together. He knew he would need quite a bit of time to catch up on sixteen years of her life. He didn't even know she had existed until he heard about it from Mariko's diary. He couldn't imagine what she thought of him. Was he a sad, crazy old man that lived in a wooden shack in the middle of nowhere? A hermit? A reclusive lunatic that had no idea what existed in the world beyond his own farm that didn't even grow anything?

He went to the bathroom, checking his appearance in the mirror once more. Although they were going fishing, he really wished he had something a little more presentable than his usual flannel shirt and jeans. It was practical, but it didn't help his image much. He wondered if he would be a disappointment to her after all the time, she spent looking for him.

He heard the truck pulling up to the front door and he headed outside, grabbing his rod and his tackle box on the way. He arrived to find Levi and Brody fetching their gear out the back of the truck.

"Boys, Emma, it's great to see you." He greeted them.

"We've been looking forward to it." Levi said, taking the lead. He looked up to the sky. "It looks like we should have a nice day for it."

"You know it." Dane replied. He looked to Emma, seeing her standing back a little. "Emma, how are you today?"

"I'm good." She told him, before she looked like she was having trouble with something.

"What is it?" He asked her. "Are you feeling alright? Do you want something to eat?"

"I was just…wondering what to call you." She said a little hesitantly. "I mean, Mr Romero? Dane? Uh…"

"Oh, right." He said, starting to rub the back of his head thoughtfully. "Well, what do you want to call me?"

"Um…" She said, lingering on the question more than a little too long. She could see the way everyone was staring at her. She should say something, she should make a decision, but what decision? Was Mr Romero too formal? Would it sound too much like she resented him for staying away when he probably didn't even know she existed? Would he think Dane was too informal? Would he want to hear another title? If so, then what? Sensei didn't seem right since he wasn't actually teaching her anything, so far Brody and Levi were trying to teach her Martial Arts…trying being the operative phrase. Dad didn't feel right to her, she had a dad at home, and she had only just met Dane, oh God, everyone was staring, how long had she been standing staring? Did they think she was an idiot? She felt like she was.

"Maybe we can talk about that once we get to the lake!" Levi said, trying to cut into the moment.

"I've chartered Mr Thatcher's boat." He told them. "I figured with four of us we'd need something a little bigger than the rowing boats and…"

He looked to Emma.

"Do you not have any gear?" He asked her. She just looked around the other three, who were all holding their own rods and tackle boxes.

"Um…no." She said a little nervously. "I don't…I haven't got around to getting some…"

"I'm sure there'll be some on the boat." Dane assured her. "Come on, if we want to have something to cook up for dinner we should be going."

"This way." Levi said, taking the lead. Brody and Emma followed him, with Dane taking up the rear, where he could watch his children, and hope that none of them saw that he was really struggling to know what on Earth he was doing.

Back at the Marx house, Hayley was having lunch with Trevor and her mom. They'd put on quite a bit of food, way more than they needed for just three of them. Hayley was starting to think that the invite to Aaron had not been as casual as she first made it seem. The attack on Aaron and Maxie was pretty common knowledge by now, and so it made sense that she wanted to try and smooth things over and ensure there was no hard feelings. Or at least…as much as that was possible.

Hayley was happy to see her mom happy that Trevor was back. She was happy to see him back herself; she knew that he had a lot of issues that he'd never been able to get treatment for through no fault of his own. That didn't mean to say it didn't still feel a little bit odd to have the man who only months ago was close to destroying her and her friends sitting next to her mom eating his third lamb chop felt a little weird.

"The lamb turned out really nice." Hayley complimented him.

"One of the doctors at the treatment centre taught me how to cook them." He told her. He'd spent a long time at a Promethea site for treatment. Not just because he had to undergo therapy for his various issues and trauma, but to ensure that there weren't any lingering influences of Psycho Green within him. They'd finally signed him as being safe to return to society provided, he continue to see a psychiatrist, allowing him to go home. "They had a few different activities, but I wasn't really much into art or gardening, so I figured the cooking was the best option. I learned a lot. Turns out I was overcooking everything."

"I could have told you that." Laura teased him, nudging him gently. Hayley just sighed.

"I'm sorry I wasn't at the tribunal." She told him. "I was busy with…"

"It's alright, I understand." He told her sadly. "Truth be told, I'm not sure it would have made much difference."

"Sorry to hear about your job." She responded. "I know how much you loved it."

"Its going to take a lot of getting used to." He agreed.

"It's all political…"

"Laura…"

"I mean, there are people that have committed actual CRIMES on that force! People who should be behind bars, not a badge!" She ranted. "Then they hang you out to dry over something that wasn't even your fault? It's not right…"

"And getting bent out of shape over it and yelling about it for the rest of my life isn't going to change anything." Trevor told her. "Its like the doctor says, I need to try and let go of anger and be able to accept that sometimes in life things happen that I can't change."

"I guess at least you get a little bit of a break." Hayley responded. "I mean, until you get another job, a little time to concentrate on yourself can't be a bad thing, right?"

"I don't actually have that much time to be honest." He said with a smile. "I actually start a new job on Monday."

"Really? Trevor, that's great!" Hayley said excitedly. "Where is it? What will you be doing?"

"Actually, we'll probably see each other." He told her. "I'm going to be working with Clint at the school."

Hayley just gulped.

"You're…you're what?" She asked.

"Yeah, they've been way understaffed for ages!" Trevor informed her. "I called Principal Hastings and she was only too happy to offer me a position."

Hayley forced a smile.

"That's great!" She replied. "Um…is there any more of that pasta salad left?"

Meanwhile, Sarah, Preston, Sandy and Calvin were just arriving at the basketball courts, finding one of them available. Calvin pulled off his fleece and tossed it and his bag aside.

"Hey, how's that for luck? A nice day today and we got a court straight away!" He commented.

"Yeah, we got lucky alright." Sandy agreed, taking a sip of water, before putting her bag aside. "So, how are we picking teams?"

"Well, it's a straight two on two, right?" Sarah asked. "How about me and Cal against you two?"

"I guess that could work." Preston responded. "What do you think Sandy?"

"Actually, we're not the only ones playing." Calvin informed them. They all just looked at him curiously.

"Really?" Preston asked him. "I thought you said…"

"Well, I know a couple of others that were at a loose end so I thought it'd be a nice thing to invite them along." Calvin responded. "Oh, here they are now!"

"Oh crap." Sarah whimpered to herself as she saw Victor and Monty approaching. Victor was grinning brightly as he approached, giving Calvin a bro-hug greeting.

"Hey, Cal, thanks for inviting us." Victor replied. "After that little mix-up at the school, I could use something to take my mind off things."

"Mix-up?" Preston asked. Victor just groaned.

"Let's just say my first day as a deputy security guard didn't go so well." He responded. "Also, sorry but it's my fault that the school's chowder isn't going to be up to much for a while."

"OK, I have a feeling I don't want to ask." Preston said with a chuckle. "So, you guys really want to do this?"

"Hey, we might not be able to morph, but how often do people get an offer to work out with the Rangers?" Monty asked cheerfully.

Calvin glanced over to where Sarah was chewing her lip, trying not to look at Victor. He and Hayley had both promised not to interfere this time around, having got things so badly wrong with Preston and Sarah. Of course, that didn't mean that they weren't having a whole world of fun with the situation. He had been disappointed when Hayley suggested that he not join her at her mom's house, but he had decided to keep himself entertained in the meantime.

"So, let's get this thing started!" Victor said, pulling off his track pants, revealing a pair of shorts underneath. Sarah bit down harder on her lip. "How are we doing this thing?"

"Aw man, wouldn't you know it? I forgot the vests!" Calvin said in a faux innocent tone. "So, how about we do this shirts v skins?"

"Well, that kind of precludes us for obvious reasons." Sandy said, grabbing Sarah. "I guess that means we're on the first team."

"Well, it's my mistake, so I guess I'll captain the skins." Calvin said, whipping off his shirt. "And since you already got first option, I guess it's my pick. Victor, want to be on my team?"

"Whatever you say!" Victor said, pulling off his shirt. Sarah needed to steady herself on Sandy as her knees buckled a little.

"Are you alright?" Sandy asked her.

"Uh…yeah, just…could do with a drink." She said, going to get some water. Calvin had to supress a chuckle at her expense. He couldn't have imagined this being any better.

"Alright, Monty, you're with us!" He told him. Monty pulled off his shirt and ran out to join them.


	10. Fishing for Connections

Dane, Levi, Brody and Emma all arrived at the lake after a short hike. Well, Brody and Dane CALLED it a short hike, but Emma wasn't sure that their idea of a short hike and hers exactly lined up. They took a trail through some woodland to enjoy the wildlife as Dane put it. Emma did think that a lot of it was very pretty indeed. Of course, the terrain was a little hard going, especially since she wasn't really terribly used to nature hikes. She didn't really have boots like the others and her trainers were quickly starting to prove a lot less than water-tight whenever she stepped in a puddle or soft ground that was even a tiny fraction deeper than the thin soles of her trainers.

"It isn't too much further." Levi said with a smile. "I remember we used to love having races along this trail. Of course, I always won."

"Always cheated you mean." Brody chuckled. "I remember all too well the time you let that tree branch swing back on me. Knocked the wind right out of me!"

"That is a complete lie! I didn't do any such thing!" Aiden gasped as he protested his innocence. Dane just glared back at him.

"Oh, you were always super competitive." Dane reminded him. "It didn't matter what it was, you had to win and you were none too gracious when you did if I remember."

"I was always magnanimous in victory!" Levi protested. Brody just laughed.

"Dude, there's a reason dad burned all our board games." Brody reminded him, before looking at Emma. "My big brother here beat me at Monopoly and I had a rather sizeable bill I still owed him, so he foreclosed on my bedroom."

"Really guys?" Levi sighed.

"Dude, you made me sleep outside! Dad found me out there in the morning and lost the plot!" Brody laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, that's it all gang up on the oldest sibling." Levi muttered as they came through the woods to the other side. When they got there, the lake was right in front of them. It really was quite a breath-taking view. Emma wasn't exactly a hugely outdoorsy person, but even she could see the beauty in this place. She gasped as she saw something moving a little way off.

"Look, look!" She said excitedly as she pointed a little way down the shore. Levi, Dane and Brody all looked along and saw a baby deer, nervously making its way out to get a drink.

"Hey, good eyes." Levi said as he put his arm around her. "What do you think dad?"

"Looks to be a strong, healthy young thing." Dane replied. "Give it another season or two, I reckon that will be a good six, seven-point buck easily."

"Seven point…?" She asked, looking to them in alarm. "You'd shoot it?"

"Um…well…uh…" Dane started to stammer, seeing the expression on her face. "Well, when we go 'hunting', more often than not we don't actually shoot anything. In fact, we generally don't even take guns."

"Wait…what?" She asked.

"It doesn't take any skill to kill." Levi told her. "What's a real challenge is getting close enough to a skittish doe to calm her enough to let you touch her."

"We don't often hunt for meat." Brody told her. "But even then, we only take what we're going to eat."

Emma just nodded in a way that left Dane feeling a little uncertain. Although they had assured her, they weren't avid hunters that just went out shooting for the sake of it, he couldn't help getting her initial reaction out of his mind. He looked to the rod in his hand and remembered she didn't have one with her. He knew there was likely to be differences between the rest of them and Emma, but it never crossed his mind that perhaps he'd chosen entirely the wrong activity. Maybe she was a vegetarian, or a vegan…he had never thought to ask.

"Emma, are you…alright?" Dane asked her. She just looked to him and nodded.

"I'm…I'm fine." She answered.

"Well, as long as you're sure." Dane answered. "I mean, this is your day too."

Emma wasn't quite so sure about that. The closest she'd come to hunting was in "Red Dead Redemption". They headed down the shore a little further to find a small jetty where a boat was waiting.

"OK, this is us." Dane said, gesturing them all aboard. Levi and Brody bounded up the gangplank very enthusiastically. Emma, not wanting to be the odd one out, started to make her way up, but was a lot less certain of her footing. Watching her heading along that plank it looked more like she was trying to balance on a tightrope between a couple of skyscrapers! Dane went with her, keeping a hold of her to reassure her until he could get aboard and pull up the gangplank. He cast off, and manned the controls, taking the boat out into slightly deeper water.

At the Marx house, things were progressing well, but were still a little quiet compared to before. Lunch had been a lot better than she expected. It was clear Trevor wasn't exaggerating when he said he had spent some time learning to cook.

"I don't think lamb has ever tasted that good!" Hayley complimented him. "Whatever they were teaching you there has done wonders."

"Let's face it I couldn't get much worse." He chuckled.

"Oh, your cooking wasn't that bad." Laura said sympathetically. "Say, here's a thought, maybe sometime soon we should invite Aaron and Maxine over."

"Mom…"

"I mean, obviously they were busy today but I'm sure they'd love some of Trevor's new recipes." She suggested. "Besides, I haven't actually met Maxine, not properly anyway, it'll be a great chance for us to all get together."

"I guess I can always ask." Hayley replied, trying not to make it too obvious she wasn't entirely sure a dinner invitation so quickly after Trevor got back was going to be well-received. "Tell you what, since Trevor cooked, how about I clear up?"

She gathered the plates and headed through to the kitchen to get a little bit of a breather from the atmosphere. She knew her mom meant well, and Trevor meant so much to her it was only natural she wanted to get everyone to like him and forgive him as quickly as possible. That didn't mean to say that people would necessarily be quite so quick to do so.

"I know your mom can be a little pushy sometimes." Trevor said, interrupting Hayley's thoughts as she was scraped the plates, preparing to load them into the dishwasher. She almost dropped one of the plates he gave her such a start. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

"It's alright, I was miles away." She assured him. Trevor took a deep breath.

"Your mom means well, she really wants people to get along, it's just one of the things I love about her, but I know it's not going to be that easy for people." Trevor assured her. "I don't know if you're going to pass the invitation along to Aaron and Maxine, but if you do, let them know there's no hurry. I won't rush them."

"I think Maxie's still a little self-conscious about eating in company." Hayley told him. She could see the expression on Trevor's face. She didn't really know what to tell him, she had tried to keep the answer truthful but without giving away too much detail. She didn't want to say that she was still a little sensitive about having a few problems with handling cutlery because of nerve damage she'd suffered when Psycho Green stabbed her. "She's…getting there, but…"

"I think I can understand." Trevor responded. "I know I have a lot to make up to a lot of people before I deserve any level of forgiveness."

"Trevor, I don't think…"

"No, part of the process is I have to accept responsibility for my part in things." Trevor interrupted her, before checking around. "Which is why I want you to know, that even though I really don't like keeping secrets from your mother, I want you to know I'm not going to say anything about you and…"

"Trevor, please just…don't say anything else." Hayley told him.

"Hayley, I'm really trying here…"

"I know you are, and I appreciate it." Hayley told him. "But threatening me and the others…"

"Whoa!" He said with a bit of a pained expression on his face. "Is that what you thought I was doing? Threatening you?"

"I know that you know about us, there's not much I can do about that." Hayley said. "And getting a job in the school? Seriously?"

"Hayley, it wasn't like there were many options!" Trevor pleaded with her. "I can't just sit around at home all day or I really will need an institution!"

"Trevor, it's like you said, people are just going to take a while to get used to you being around again." She reiterated. "And I don't think you can push it."

She loaded up the dishwasher and turned it on.

"Now, I've got some homework I really need to do." Hayley told him. "Please, just give me some time to do it."

As she left to go up to her room, Trevor just leaned against the counter.

"Nice job Marx." He sighed. "Really well done."

Over on the basketball courts, everyone was having fun. Well, arguably everyone except Sarah. Calvin could hardly concentrate on the game he was having so much fun watching Sarah floundering and flailing around on the court. Of course, since Victor was on his team and was good enough that there were colleges interested in offering him a scholarship if he wanted it, he really didn't have too much to worry about.

"Alright guys, can we take a break for a little bit?" Preston asked as Victor slammed home another dunk, breezing past Sarah, who didn't even seem to move as he came barrelling towards her. "I think we need to regroup for a moment here."

"I think you need more than that, I think you need a body bag!" Monty chortled in a grunting laugh as Victor came to him, high-fiving him. "But we could use a drink."

"Yeah, I could use something cold and…ooh, there's the girl with the shaved ice cart!" Victor said, running after a vendor. Sarah, Preston and Sandy got into a huddle.

"Alright guys, we need to focus." Preston told them. "If we can beat Galvanax, we can turn this around."

"Uh…technically I DIDN'T beat Galvanax. I wasn't a Ranger yet." She reminded him. "And I love the optimism, but it's 39 to 2. I really don't think there's anything that can turn this around. Unless we're allowed to morph, but I have a suspicion that would be frowned on under the whole 'personal gain' rule."

"Come on, have a little faith, will you?" Preston asked, putting his arm around her and holding her close. Sarah just tried to look away from them as she drank some water. She didn't resent Preston and Sandy's relationship; she had been delighted that they had found each other. Unfortunately, right now the last thing she wanted to see was the happy couple show. Even Hayley and Calvin, the couple that were a shoe-in for most adorable couple in their senior year yearbook since before they even set foot in the school was a little wearing. She knew exactly what the problem was, it was her stupid crush on Victor.

She didn't know why this had to happen to her now. In a few months, she'd probably be off in college in another city, Victor would be in Police Academy, or possibly a college in the area if he didn't get in and there would be more than enough miles between them that she'd never have to even hear his name again. She'd spent most of the year being irritated by almost everything he did, why did she have to start felling like this now when she was so close to some of the most important exams of her life?

It wasn't that she didn't understand the appeal of tenderness and closeness that people had with their partners. She did envy what they had, but there was plenty of time for her to find that for herself, why did her stupid brain have to obsess about it now?

"Alright, I think we need to change up the tactics a little." Preston stated.

"I don't think we need tactics, what we need is a miracle." Sandy responded. "Some marking would be nice, I mean Sarah's spent plenty of time watching Victor, but she hasn't actually done much marking. I'm good but even I can't cover two people at once."

"Yeah, that's…good." Sarah said vacantly. Sandy waved a hand in front of her face.

"Sarah?" She asked. "Are you even listening?"

"Sorry." Sarah replied. "OK, so any ideas?"

"Cinema afterwards?" Sandy replied. "Maybe we can finally go see that God-awful train movie Sarah was on about?"

"Or…you know…not." Preston replied, tickling her a little. Sarah just rolled her eyes and walked away from them. She could live without the show, especially right now. Besides, she'd seen the movie and knew it was terrible, easily the worst of the series. Since they'd already advertised the next one as taking place on a train to the moon, it was obvious the series had well and truly jumped the shark. That didn't mean to say she wasn't going to see it, but…Runaway Train had seen its salad days come and go to be sure.

A cone of shaved ice was shoved in front of her face.

"Raspberry, your favourite!" Victor declared. Sarah took it off him, but furrowed her brows.

"My…" She said, before looking to him. "You know my favourite flavour?"

"Of course, I do! I remember you ordered it when we were at that fishing competition." Victor reminded her.

"I can't believe you remembered that." She answered.

"Well, enjoy." Victor said, taking a bite of his, but some of it fell onto his chest, sliding down and causing him to shiver.

"Ooh, that's cold!" He responded. "Now I really wish I was a shirt! Anyway, see you on the court!"

As he trotted away, Sarah flopped down onto the grass and started to eat her cone. She didn't notice as Calvin slipped down next to her.

"So…this game…it's going pretty well isn't it?" He asked.

"I…guess so." Sarah replied.

"You know, Victor is playing really, well, isn't he?" Calvin asked her. "I mean, he is owning this court like a beast!"

"Mmmhmmm." Sarah responded, chomping down on the shaved ice. She took so much it felt like it was burning in her mouth, and swallowing only made it worse, chilling her insides and giving her killer brainfreeze.

"I mean, as an athlete he is…damn!" Calvin stated. "And talk about built? I'm starting to wonder how he'd look in the Spandex and…"

"Oh, dear God, you know!" Sarah rushed out, burying her face in her hands. Calvin was struggling not to keep chuckling, but seeing her reaction, he was starting to get the idea he'd pushed this a little too far. He put a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, sorry, I just…I was just…"

"I know, what the hell is wrong with me?" She muttered. "I was with Preston, the sweetest, nicest, cutest guy in existence and I didn't feel that spark at all, but now I look at Victor and…"

She let out a whimper as she cast her eyes over him.

"I need help!" She whispered. Calvin now felt like a world-class heel. As much as he loved trolling his friend, he could see that it was troubling her a lot more than he originally believed. He put his arm around her.

"Well, you know, Victor really isn't that bad a guy." Calvin conceded. Sarah just looked to him darkly.

"Don't you think I know that?" She asked him. "I mean, if I still thought he was an airhead or a blowhard or he was just that guy who kept bragging about trophies…I could just concentrate on that and remind myself how much of an idiot I thought he was but…"

She just shook her head and hung her head. Calvin took a deep breath, before getting up, before stumbling and falling on the ground.

"AH!" Calvin called out.

"Cal, what happened?" Preston called out. "Are you OK?"

"I think I turned my ankle!" He replied.

"Are you alright?" Sandy asked. "Are you sure you didn't…?"

"It's fine, I'm sure I just twisted it." He replied in pained grunts. "I'm sure I'll be OK if I just rest it, but…I don't think I can play anymore."

"Of course, we understand." Victor answered. "You want me to help take you…?"

"It's alright, I can take him." Sarah answered, seeing Calvin cast a little wink her way. She went to his side, 'helping' him up. "I'll get him home."

"Alright, hope you feel better." Victor said as he turned to Monty. "Well, I guess we can always go study those regulations books Clint wanted us to memorise."

"Shame, I really thought we could turn that game around." Preston said as they all headed off in their own directions. He saw the way Sandy was glaring at him. "OK, it was hopeless."

"So, what do we do for the rest of the day?" She asked him.

"Get cleaned up then terrible train movie?" Preston suggested. Sandy just smiled.

"That sounds great." She answered as they held hands, walking away.

Over on the lake, Emma was sitting, resting her face on her hand, bored out of her mind as she held a borrowed fishing rod in her other hand. She heard a yell go up from the other side of the boat.

"Now, that is the winner of the day so far!" Brody said proudly as he hauled a huge fish onto the boat.

"Since when did you get so good at this?" Levi asked, picking up his bait tin. "I swear, something must be wrong with my bait."

"Sure, blame the bait." Brody laughed. "What is it they always say about a workman and his tools?"

Levi just hit him with his hat. Dane smiled to see his boys like that, but he couldn't help looking at Emma and seeing her looking decidedly less interested in the whole day. He went over to her.

"Bring in the line." Dane told her. "Check your bait, it's possible something got it."

She pulled in the line, only to find her hook was indeed empty. She just sighed.

"I didn't even feel anything." She moaned. Dane helped her bait her hook. "I just…I'm no good at this."

"No one's any good at first, you just need a few pointers." He told her. "Here, this time after you cast your line, instead of just letting the hook sit there, try bobbing it around a little. If it's moving the fish will think it's a nice, tasty bug to eat."

He saw her starting to wave the rod around and took her hand.

"No, try it like this, a nice, smooth motion." He told her. "Think of the rod like…a sword. You don't just wave it around and hope for the best, it's a nice, precise motion."

This didn't help Sandy at all. As much as she was trying with her training, her sword technique had been described as being haphazard to put it charitably. She wound up and swung the rod back, at which there was a howl of pain.

"Oh my God, I'm sorry!" She rushed out as Levi started dancing around, her hook stuck in his shoulder. "I'll just…"

"Levi, Levi, hold still!" Brody told him. "I think I've got…AAAHHH!"

Emma pulled the rod at exactly the wrong time, and as Brody freed the hook from Levi's shoulder, it instead got pulled right into his finger. He staggered back, tripping over a tackle box and fell over, spilling it.

"Brody!" She called out, rushing to help, but she stepped on some spilled bait and slipped, surging forward and accidentally shoved him clean over the side of the boat. She got up, looking more than a little horrified by what happened. Tears were starting to form in her eyes, but as Brody finally managed to remove the hook from his hand, and Dane and Brody stared at her while Levi swam around to the ladder at the back, her eyes were wide in horror. She'd managed to completely ruin the whole trip. She never felt more like she didn't belong, tears were starting to sting her eyes, before Dane started laughing. A few moments later, Brody started laughing too. She just stared around in amazement.

"I'm sorry, I know I'm a klutz!" She sniffed. "I can't…I didn't mean…I'm sorry, I know I must…you must be really disappointed."

Dane pulled up his shirt, showing her a long, deep scar running up his rib cage.

"That's what happened the first time I cast a line." He told her as Levi arrived back on the deck. He looked to Brody. "Brody, show her your finger."

He held up his left hand, showing her that his middle finger was bent in an unnatural way, slightly out to the side.

"First time trying a spin-kick." He told her. "Levi?"

"If I ever shave my head, you'll see it's like a jigsaw up there." He chuckled. "I loved climbing trees, but gravity…not such a great relationship!"

"I…I don't…I don't understand." She stammered.

"Let's just say, there's a reason the Romeros spend so much time working on balance and technique and co-ordination." Dane told her. "It doesn't come naturally to us."

"So, what you're saying is…I'm not a hopeless case?" She asked him. "I'm not a disappointment?"

"I'm saying I think you take a little more after your old man than you think." Dane assured her.

"But all of you are so…"

"Like I said, there's a reason we train so much." Brody assured her. "Believe me, if we can do it, just about anyone can."

"So, I don't know about you, but I think we should have enough here for dinner tonight." Levi stated. "If we stop off for some ice-cream first."

"You get to pick the flavour." Dane said, putting a hand on Emma's shoulder.

"Chocolate!" She rushed out quickly. The three of them looked at each other, before looking back to her smiling.

"Oh, there's no denying it." Brody replied. "She is definitely a Romero through and through!"

"Alright, you three start cleaning this up." Dane told them. "I'll take the boat back."

As Dane went to start steering the boat back to shore, and Brody and Levi started to help Emma clean up, she could only think of what Dane had said. It might not be a natural talent for basketball or a birthmark, but it seemed that there was something they all shared after all.


	11. A New Project

The rest of the night at the Romero farm went a lot smoother than the day. It had now been established that fishing most certainly wasn't something Emma was interested in, or was likely to become interested in, but she did assure Dane that she enjoyed camping and she seemed to like the farm.

He had put to rest one of his thoughts, it seemed that she was not a vegetarian. At least, she was the world's most confused vegetarian if the enthusiasm with which she devoured the fish they caught for dinner was anything to go by. It seemed that the act of catching the fish was just not an area she was hugely interested in, but she did seem happy enough to eat them. By the time they got to dessert, and were doling out ice-cream the only mystery he couldn't solve was where exactly she put it all given her small frame.

They were all laughing and joking, sitting around the fire as they ate and talked. It was something of a Romero family tradition, meal times were about more than just eating, they were about catching up, about taking stock and getting together with each other to find out what everyone was doing.

"So, I've still got a way to go, but my scores were going in the right direction, so I figure if I just tweak my study schedule a little, I should be able to get some good grades." Brody informed his dad. "I've not made a final decision on what kind of path I want to take, but I reckon maybe some business courses or perhaps learn a trade. I always liked woodwork…"

"I didn't think people were too keen on carpentry nowadays." Dane said with a quizzical look on his face. He generally made ends meet doing odd jobs for many of the nearby farms. Among his many skills were carpentry and metalwork. Although he liked the old-fashioned feel in Millport, which seemed to suit him, he didn't kid himself everywhere in the world was like that. "I thought everyone was all about saving the trees and the oceans and that kind of thing."

"Well, that's the thing, people aren't just looking for fancy furniture these days, a lot of people are into renewables too." Brody told him. "I was thinking a business that did old-fashioned carpentry specialising in fast-growing renewable woods would be something a lot of people would be interested in. Properly finished there's not a massive difference, a lot of people would be just as happy with pine as oak. There are some pretty good finishes these days."

"That's not a bad idea, a lot of people are really into retro things nowadays." Emma said, before realising that she had just called a lot of what Dane loved old. "Uh…you know…classic and suchlike."

"Nice save." Levi whispered in her ear as Dane chuckled, shaking his head and eating more ice cream. "But he is right, I've seen a lot of people going to flea markets and suchlike looking for stuff like she's talking about. Maybe if they had a low-cost alternative…"

"That's…something to think about." Dane said, nodding his head. "You know I've got plenty of tools in the barn. You know…if my tools aren't too retro!"

Emma just gulped down her ice cream, but seeing the smile Dane gave her, she could see he didn't really mind.

"So, my son says computers are your thing?" Dane asked her. She just nodded.

"I mean, I really love Martial Arts and I really love sciences and comic books and…you know, tons of stuff, but yeah, computers and tech are kind of my thing! Coding, programming, hacking…uh…on occasion." She said, suddenly looking sheepish. "Nothing TOO illegal."

Levi just rolled his eyes.

"Emma, you do know that we literally train in breaking and entry, right?" Levi asked her. "We're not exactly boy scouts when it comes to stuff like that."

"Besides, the ancient ninja were all about the gathering and misdirection of information." Brody reminded her. "They were also all about using whatever tools were available to them. I'm pretty sure that if there had been computers around in Feudal Japan there'd have been a ton of ninjas working on computers."

"Really?" She asked him.

"Yeah, all they cared about was that the tools were practical for their purposes." Dane agreed. "It seems to me that being able to break into someone's computer and stealing their secrets without ever setting foot in their heavily guarded fortress sounds like an approach they'd appreciate."

"Oh, those fortresses are heavily guarded alright!" Emma told them. "Firewalls, tracers, worm programs…trust me, sometimes I have to get pretty creative when I'm working on something."

Dane thought about it for a moment, before he put his bowl down.

"Emma, maybe you could work on a project with me." He suggested. "Wait right here."

He headed into the back of the cabin, causing Emma to look around her brothers curiously. A few minutes later, he came out with a very large box full of items, made out of what looked like Formica, slightly yellowed with age, and with wires and other things poking out. He plopped it down on the table with a weighty thunk.

"I've been meaning to set up my old computer for a while." He told her. "I…just never got around to it."

Emma got up and started rummaging around the box. Dane started scratching the back of his head.

"I mean, I've not used it in a while, it might need a few things repaired or…whatever you call it." Dane responded, looking to Emma as she inspected all the parts judgementally. "So, what do you think?"

"I don't know, I'm trying to figure out where the coal goes." She responded, causing both her brothers to do a spit-take. Dane just furrowed his brows.

"I know it's not the most up to date thing out there." He responded.

"No offence but…no one has made this stuff in years." Emma told him.

"Is anyone else forgetting that I was stuck in the Nexus Prism for a decade?" Dane asked defensively.

"Dad, I have a feeling a lot of this stuff was out of production even before you were merged with the Nexus Prism." Levi laughed.

"So, you're saying it's useless?" Dane asked her.

"Maybe…maybe not." Emma replied. "I have an idea, but it'll require a trip into the city. I know a place that can get you out of…you know…the dot matrix days. Would you lend me your phone?"

Dane reached into his back pocket and pulled out his cell phone. It was a plastic brick with a simple green and black screen and buttons right on the front of it. Sandy looked to the phone and then to him, before sighing.

"I'll use mine." She replied, pulling out her I-phone and starting to do some internet searches. Dane just looked to her brothers.

"Alright then, I guess tomorrow your old man is getting introduced to the digital age." He responded. "I'll clear up."

As he took the dishes and headed to the kitchen to clean up, he couldn't help smiling.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Cosmo arrived in the shuttle bay as a ship came in, delivering the latest new monster for Cosmo's show. With Odious distracted with Brax, who was taking a sabbatical following his defeat at the hands of the Rangers to regroup and let them think that he was done for good before coming back, it meant he had managed to speak to Drakkon and get one of his followers scheduled on the next broadcast while Wrench fitted himself up with upgrades that Drakkon had sent him.

The ship touched down as Cosmo strode up to it, the walkway opening up and Blammo walked out. He was a curious looking creature, seemingly made up of metal spheres. He strode up to Cosmo as he came to greet him.

"Blammo my boy! How was your trip?" Cosmo asked him.

"It took me straight through some SPD territory so…it was fun!" He cackled as he gestured to the ship. "Is someone going to get my luggage?"

"You heard the man!" Cosmo said, snapping his fingers and gesturing to the ship. Some kudabots rushed inside to get his luggage as Cosmo guided him away, putting his arm around him. "So, Drakkon told me you were coming, but he was a little light on details as to what exactly you…"

Just then, Cosmo flinched as a huge explosion went off behind them. He turned to see charred, twisted metal sitting where Blammo's ship used to be. Pieces of Kudabots were imbedded in the walls and ceiling. Blammo just started laughing.

"I travel light. Real light." He told him, patting his body. "I've got everything I need right here!"

"Impressive." Cosmo replied as he gestured to more kudabots. "Clean this up! I want this place spotless when I get back!"

The following morning, down on Earth, Dane, Brody, Levi and Emma pulled up outside a strip mall a few blocks from the main shopping district. The businesses here were a lot smaller than the ones in the city, attracted to the area by lower rates. Most of the units were tiny, barely able to hold more than half a dozen people at once along with the shelving units. Emma looked towards one of the units and pointed.

"That's the one we're looking for." She told them. Dane just looked to her curiously.

"Isn't that kind of like Radio Shack?" Dane asked her.

"They…uh…went out of business years ago dad." Brody informed him. "But…it does look kind of…junky."

"Yeah, where's all the computers?" Levi asked her.

"You'll see!" Emma told them. "Bring the box."

She went into the shop, followed by Dane and her brothers. She looked around the shelves for a little bit, before approaching the counter, where a guy was standing. He had a kind of scraggly beard and moustache and multiple facial piercings. He was fading t-shirt depicting some kind of video game character. Emma just came to the desk, smiling.

"Hey, nice t-shirt." She greeted him. "So, did you play the original or the re-make?"

"Both, of course." The guy said with a slightly grunting laugh. "What can I do for you? Looking for a Hello Kitty app?"

"I was wondering if you could suggest what we do with this?" Emma asked as she gestured her dad to put the box down. The guy started taking stuff out of it, laying it all out, checking the connectors and suchlike. He stroked his chin and thought about it for a moment.

"Paperweight?" He suggested. "Doorstop? Maybe recycle it?"

"Really?" She asked him. He considered it all for a moment.

"Look, it's not like anyone uses any of these parts anymore, it's not really worth anything." He told her. "I guess if you wanted to trade it in, I could offer like, twenty bucks."

Levi, Brody and Dane all looked a bit dejected, but like they were expecting this. Emma just started laughing.

"Oh, I'm sorry, you think I'm some kind of noob!" She said, slapping her hand on the counter. "You see, I've already checked what this thing is worth."

"Then you should know it's a piece of junk…" She pulled out her phone, showing him a listing on her phone.

"Actually, I know it's a collector's item. If I put it on E-bay right now, I'll easily get five-to-eight hundred bucks for it." She told him. Dane, Levi and Brody all looked to her a little shocked. "But I have a feeling the way your left hand went under that counter you're already on your phone to a local collector you know that you already know that's looking for one and willing to pay good money."

She just shrugged.

"You know…that or you're just REALLY excited to see one of these things." Emma continued. Brody just started sniggering, while Levi had to bite his hand to stop from doing the same. Dane just looked impressed. "So, what is your friend going to offer? 1200? 1100?"

The guy behind the counter just sighed.

"Come on, I'm running a business here." He moaned. "You can't fault me for trying."

"Yes, I really can." Emma told him. "Oh, look at that, my listing just hit 900. If you offer me that right now, you get to trade it to your friend." Emma replied. "You don't? I can always accept this offer."

"Alright, alright!" He sighed, going into his register and pulling out a huge pile of cash, starting to count it out. Emma just put a hand on his.

"Tell you what? Make it 950 in store credit." She told him.

"Oh, come on!" He complained.

"Hey, you give us store credit, you know we spend it here." She told him. "And I'm looking to spend it today. My dad REALLY wants his new computer!" The guy just put the money away, slamming the drawer shut.

"Alright, whatever!" He told her. "I'm just going to check this works, if it doesn't…"

"Oh, it works, I already tried it." Emma answered. "You're the only con artist here."

As he walked away, taking the computer into the back, no doubt to check it and pack it up for his client and give him a call, Emma turned back to her family.

"That was…INCREDIBLE!" Brody said excitedly.

"You were like a total Jedi with that dude!" Levi added.

"What can I say? People see me, they think I can be pushed around." She said with a shrug. "They don't consider the fact I might know more than them."

"OK, so where are the computers?" Levi asked her. She just went to the shelves and picked up a circuit board, inspecting it. "Emma, where are the computers?"

"Only suckers buy pre-made." She declared. "If you know what you're doing, you can build so much better than the stuff on the shelves at a fraction of the price."

"We're…we're going to build a computer?" Dane asked her. She just nodded.

"You build barns and swords, I build computers!" She answered. "I guess you could call me a tech ninja…ooh! Now this…this is a thing of beauty! We just so have to get this!"

Dane just looked to his sons, who both shrugged and just dutifully followed Emma around as she looked out all the parts she would need for his project. It was starting to look like a much bigger project than Dane was initially intending, but if Emma could go back into the days of the ancient ninja to learn their ways, then perhaps he could learn at the feet of his new tech ninja sensei.

Elsewhere in the galaxy, Sheriff Skyfire space-jumped onto his ship, his armour still smoking from his latest mission. He limped towards the cockpit as his ship's computer burst into life.

"So, did this mission go smoothly?" It asked him ironically.

"As smoothly as always." Skyfire replied, sheathing his katana and hanging it up on the wall.

"So, no arrests then." The computer asked him.

"Not so to speak." Skyfire answered.

"So, that's a no then." The computer stated.

"Any new fugitives in the area?" Skyfire asked the computer.

"I have to inform you that you have several contusions, deep muscle bruising, some minor muscle and nerve damage…"

"I'm still on my feet, and law-breakers don't take a rest." Skyfire interrupted the computer. "Next fugitive."

"I must remind you I'm programmed to look out for your welfare…"

"And I disabled your ethical subroutines which can over-ride my decision to go against medical advice!" Skyfire reminded the computer. "Which means your advice is precisely that, advice! Now, I kept most of your programming because you're useful but if I have to take out more of your coding to stop your constant mothering…"

"Fine, I'll find the next file." The computer responded. "Oh, here's an interesting one, fugitive file XY987540. Blammo."

"Blammo? He's in the area?" Skyfire asked.

"Yes, it appears that there have been reports of him coming through the area, leaving a lot of destruction in his wake." The computer told him. Skyfire just sighed.

"He always does." Skyfire responded. "So, how close is he?"

"His craft appears to have stopped moving." The computer informed him. "We should be at his last known location within a single cycle."

"Plot a course to intercept his last known location." Skyfire ordered his computer. "Autopilot, maximum speed. I'll be in the back."

"Would you like me to put through your standard broadcast?" The computer asked.

"Of course!" Skyfire replied as he headed through the ship. He went past the engine rooms, past his quarters, all the way into the back, to the galley. There, he stood by the counter and turned on the viewing screen.

"And welcome to another edition of delicacies of the universe starting your host Estoria!" The transmission declared as a chef appeared on the screen. Skyfire clapped as he saw the image on screen.

"Are you tired of the same old desserts? Have you ever tried to make something light and airy and ended up with a pancake?" The chef began. "Are you struggling to make the perfect souffle?"

"I am struggling with souffle!" Skyfire responded as though the chef could actually hear him. "I love them, but I've never been able to make them."

"I bet you're like I used to be, you love them but have never been able to make them!" The chef declared. "Well, struggle no more! Today I'm going to give you the secret to the perfect dessert to astound your friends and family alike. Now, first of all, look out your ingredients. You'll need flour, eggs, milk…"

Skyfire started looking out all his ingredients and all the cookware he'd need, before turning his attention back to the screen.

"Now that we're all organised, are we ready to begin?" The chef asked.

"Of course!" Skyfire said gleefully. "I can practically taste it now!"


	12. Sheriff Skyfire

Hayley was out, taking Kody for his morning walk. By the time Monday morning rolled around, she couldn't believe how eager she was to get to school. She'd always been a keen student anyway, but right now, she was looking forward to getting a break from home.

Like her mother, she was happy that Trevor was home. She loved him, he had been a part of her family now for some time, and there were a lot of times he was there for her just as readily as one of her biological parents would be. She was genuinely glad to have him back from Psycho Green's clutches, but at the same time she just couldn't help feeling a little unease.

Psycho Green had him in his clutches, that much wasn't in doubt, and it also wasn't in doubt that for the majority of it Trevor simply had no control over his actions. Even the courts had ruled that he wasn't guilty of any of Psycho Green's crimes, but there was still a little doubt over some of his actions. There were so many of Psycho Green's attacks that seemed to be motivated, at least in part, by Trevor's own personality. He may have used Trevor's existing issues and anger to spur him to lose control of his mind, but Trevor had at least inspired much of it. The attack on Tracker, the attack on her dad and Maxine, the campaign against the Rangers…all of them were things Trevor had admitted had been in his mind.

Trevor, for his part, understood why people were wary. He had pleaded with Hayley across the weekend a few times that he was now free of Psycho Green's influence, that he wasn't even just the man he had been before, but if anything thanks to his counselling he was stronger than before. He was finally able to face the daemons of his past that he had been carrying for so long to try and be better for them all. Hayley had rather directly told him in one of her more frustrated moments that she did believe him and that was the only reason she risked him being anywhere near her mom. That she wouldn't have allowed him to come back if she thought for a minute that doing so would put the rest of her family and friends in danger. She wasn't going to allow for anyone to put her loved ones in danger…even if it was the guy that taught her how to defend herself the first time she came home from school in tears because a boy didn't take no for an answer.

She hated the thought of threatening Trevor, but she couldn't help thinking about some of the things he'd done either. When she thought about Maxine struggling with her cutlery or thinking about the fact that Trevor had threatened Calvin when he saw Hayley coming home with bruises and made a pretty natural and understandable assumption she was sure a lot of fathers would.

Now, he was taking a job at the school. It was understandable, he needed to get on with his life, but it did feel a little bit like he was crowding her a bit. Still, it was a big enough school it wasn't like he was going to be standing over her all the time. Still, when he had offered to give her a lift, she had politely declined and suddenly 'remembered' that Kody needed his walk.

It wouldn't be the first time she'd brought Kody to school. He was a well-trained dog and didn't cause any trouble, so no one really minded him being there. He'd generally just wait in the yard or in the playground for her to come back to him. He'd been with Hayley now a good few years, a rescue of sorts, she had found him as an obvious stray that had been left for dead after a car had hit him. She'd taken him to a vet and since he had no identification he just kind of ended up being adopted into the family. He was also a great excuse any time she wanted to get away on her own.

There was a time that she also enjoyed getting to talk to him and have someone just listen that couldn't talk back…of course, those days were gone.

"Wow, that is a big load!" Hayley commented as she bagged up his latest 'gift'. "What the hell have you been eating?"

"Hey, don't complain, it's not like I get any say in what your mom buys." Kody replied to her. She just shook her head. He had a point there. If he went shopping with Hayley then she could take a cue from him what he'd like, but her mom didn't have the benefit of having had contact with the Ninja Steel and so to her, Kody only barked. "But try and tell her not to buy that stuff again."

"You're kind of picky for someone I once found eating a pigeon." She sighed as she got up, carrying on her walk to the school. She paused as she saw Trevor's car in the parking lot. It looked like he'd gotten there before her.

"It's OK, he's got a job to do." Hayley reminded herself. "He'll probably spend most of his day in the office watching cameras."

She headed towards the school, depositing the bag into the bin as she went. She found Sarah and Calvin just outside. Sarah was hanging by a corner, looking around in a cautious manner.

"And…what's going on here?" Hayley asked.

"Just…making sure the coast is clear." Sarah told her. Calvin looked to her sympathetically.

"She means making sure Victor isn't around." Calvin clarified. Hayley just looked a little startled.

"Oh…OH! Well…why would that be…?"

"It's alright, she knows that we know." Calvin sighed.

"So…what's with the secret agent thing?" Hayley asked.

"I figure, since I only get into a muddle when he's around, all I have to do is avoid him." Sarah told her without a hint of irony in her tone. "You know, out of sight out of mind."

"Really?" Hayley asked. "That's your plan?"

"Yeah?" Sarah asked.

"So, you're just going to hide from Victor for the rest of the year?" She asked. "Really?"

"No, just until I stop thinking about him and his stupid face and his stupid smile and his stupid…OH my God, can you please stop bringing him up?" Sarah asked. "I just need to make it a few months and I'm sure it'll be fine."

"Oh yeah, that sounds like a really good plan." Hayley said sarcastically. "Come on, we'll get you a breakfast burrito."

With that, Hayley grabbed her and dragged her into the school, with Calvin and Kody only a little way behind her.

In another part of the school, Trevor was getting his induction from Clint, along with Victor and Monty. Although he'd already given them an induction, he felt like a refresher was warranted since they had tried to arrest the school chef on their first day. Trevor could feel his eyes glazing over as Clint explained what was entailed in the job. It wasn't that long ago he was a real cop, working with real cases and real criminals. To hear Clint talk, it was as though he thought that he was actually a cop himself and this was his jurisdiction. Trevor had to wonder exactly how many people it really took to ask kids not to run in the hall or shove in the lunch line.

"And that is how the cameras work." Clint said, finishing his tutorial. "Now, how about we do a pop quiz? You see a kid running on the stairs…"

"You ask him to stop?" Trevor asked. Clint clicked his fingers and pointed at him with a bright smile as though Trevor had just come up with the secret to cold fusion.

"Exactly!" Clint responded. "Now, remember, what is your best friend?"

"Your citation book!" Victor said, throwing his hand up in the air. "It's a written record of what you've warned someone for!"

"Exactly right! Though I would have also accepted pen, so make sure you always have a couple on you at all times because those suckers run out awful fast!" Clint replied. "So, who says we get out there and make today a happy and healthy one for the kids of Summer Cove High?"

As he puffed out his chest and strutted out the office, Trevor just shook his head in disbelief.

"Is he for real?" He asked.

"Oh, very much so!" Monty said, nodding his head enthusiastically. "We all do our bit to make sure everyone has a safe and productive day!"

"Come, Monty!" Victor declared, adopting a heroic pose. "Let's go serve and protect!"

With that, they both left. Trevor just rolled his eyes before getting up and heading for the door.

"I can remember when I had a real job." He grumbled.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Cosmo was preparing for another show, warming up the crowd to introduce the latest warrior.

He had heard very little about Blammo, he wasn't really on the scene. He wasn't a gladiator of any real sort, he was more of a straightforward criminal and didn't really go for the entertainment industry at all. Still, he had been sent by Drakkon, and he seemed powerful enough so Cosmo was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt if it meant he didn't end up on Drakkon's bad side.

"Ladies and Gentlemonsters, please put your hands together, for the powerful, the explosive, the amazing BLAMMO!" Cosmo introduced him, at which Blammo ran awkwardly onto the stage, waving as he went. Cosmo had briefed him on appearing before an audience, but it wasn't really his comfort zone. He was more comfortable blowing up bank vaults than trying to win over a crowd.

As the cheers died down, Blammo just stared out at the crowd, and Cosmo waited…and waited….and waited. This was almost as bad as bad footage, dead air! Blammo had either frozen up or didn't realise the audience was waiting on him giving them a reason to care that he was there, to tell them something about himself or show them what he could do. Most warriors the challenge was getting them to shut up and keep their segments to time. If it was up to some warriors, they'd happily talk all day and night about how great they were.

"So, Blammo, how about you tell us a little something about…?" Cosmo said, nudging him to try and give him the idea he needed to do, well, anything really. However, soon the air was split by the deafening sound of a siren. Cosmo started looking around in a panic as the audience started doing the same, looking for the exits.

"Uh…don't worry folks, that's not the fire alarm, there's no need to evacuate." Cosmo assured them. He looked to the production team just off the stage. "What is that? It's ruining the…"

Just then, there was a blinding flash of light, and a figure appeared. Everyone fell silent as Sheriff Skyfire appeared before them, holding a rolled up parchment in his hand. There was a long moment of silence as everyone just stared at him.

"Um…I'm sorry, but…can I help you with something?" Cosmo asked. Skyfire just pointed straight at Blammo.

"I'm here for him!" Skyfire declared. Blammo just seemed to start to shudder uncontrollably. One of his hands strayed behind him as a bomb appeared from his body, coming into his hands. "My name is Sheriff Skyfire, and you are wanted for 7984 counts of homicide, 109,973 counts of grievous bodily harm, thousands of counts of destruction of property, grand theft, improper use of explosives…"

Blammo set the bomb and threw it at Skyfire. In a motion far faster than anyone could keep track of, Skyfire ran straight for him, slicing through the bomb and through the explosion. He didn't even break pace as he headed for Blammo, his armour on fire and smoke billowing out from him. He tackled Blammo to the ground, mounting him and pinning him to the floor.

…assaulting an officer of the law, resisting arrest…" He said, continuing to list his crimes as the sprinklers activated and put out the fires. He started raining hard fists into Blammo's face. "…and PISSING ME OFF!"

He grabbed Blammo's head, ramming it into the stage and knocking him unconscious. He got up, observing his handiwork.

"A live perp, that's a novel change." He commented, before activating his communicator. "Computer, one perp to beam into holding!"

There was a flash of light and Blammo disappeared, at which Cosmo came rushing over.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" He screamed.

"No need to thank me good citizen, it's all in a day's work!" Skyfire declared proudly. "You'll get no more trouble from that criminal."

"But…but…you're RUNING MY SHOW!" Cosmo yelled. Skyfire just looked to him.

"Show?" He asked. Cosmo started waving at the sign. Skyfire just looked to it. "Galaxy Warriors? Never heard of it."

"Sheriff Skyfire! It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance!" Badonna said as she came onto the stage, interjecting herself between Skyfire and Cosmo. "I am Badonna, the General Manager of this show. Rest assured, I had no idea one of my guests was a wanted criminal. If I had known, I'd have called for the authorities right away."

"What?" Cosmo asked incredulously.

"I absolutely hate crime." Badonna told him as she offered him her hand. "Please, accept my apologies and assurance that I had no idea I had a criminal in my midst."

"It's quite alright miss, criminals are a sneaky breed." Skyfire assured her. "But you don't need to worry, I was just doing my job. Crime never rests and neither do I. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm always on duty…"

"Well, if that's the case…perhaps you can help me with some criminals that have wronged me?" She asked him. Skyfire stopped in his tracks.

"Criminals you say?" He asked. "Who?"

"Have you heard of the Ninja Steel Rangers?" She asked. The penny finally dropped with Cosmo, he could see what she was up to. Skyfire had taken Blammo apart in spectacular fashion. If he had that kind of power, then perhaps he could be of use.

"No, I can't say that I have." Skyfire replied, stroking his chin. "What can you tell me about them?"

Cosmo held a finger to his lips in a gesture to the crowd. Many of them were sniggering as they played along. None of them really cared why they fought, they could only imagine the show when Skyfire and the Rangers did fight. Badonna put a hand to her forehead.

"Oh, they are simply the most awful thieves imaginable!" She said in a very dramatic fashion. "Why, I was using my Nexus Prism to do good, and they came and stole it from me!"

"They did?" He asked her. Cosmo pulled up an image of the Rangers on the screen.

"Oh, oh yes, they are simply the most awful people." Cosmo agreed. "Why, we just wanted to do good and make this corner of the universe a little brighter but they took it all for themselves! Some noble types have come to our aid to try and bring back what's ours but those horrid Rangers keep destroying them!"

"Is that a fact?" Skyfire asked. "Where are they now?"

"Why, they're down on Earth!" Badonna told him. "But…if you have too much to do, we'll understand of course…"

"Fear not good citizen, I'm always on duty!" Skyfire declared. "No one escapes justice for long when I'm on the case, SPACE JUMP!"

Cosmo just blinked.

"That…just happened right?" He asked. She just shrugged.

"We hired the Galactic Ninjas." She reminded him. "Best case scenario, he destroys the Rangers and brings the Nexus Prism back to us. Worst case scenario, they pummel each other into oblivion and we pick up the pieces of what's left."

"And I get a killer show out of it!" Cosmo said with a sick smile.

**A/N:** Well, Skyfire's on his way and on a collision course with the Rangers. That little bout is on its way real soon. But in the meantime, here's another little Beast Morphers taster that I like to call 'Good to be the King.' Hope you enjoy it.

The alarm clock sounded and Blaze mashed his hand down on it to silence it. Waking up in a bed that was large enough to be considered a trampoline, covered in deep, burgundy silk bed clothing, he started to make his way to the edge of the bed. He got up, heading for the window and looked out over Coral Harbour. His family home up in the hills had a magnificent view over the city, somewhere that he and his family could look down all that was theirs.

His family was not just one of the richest in Coral Harbour, but the world. A few years ago, when Morph-X was in its early development stages, very few were willing to invest in it, preferring reliable investments like oil. What they didn't know though was that as well as just an environmental consideration, there was another reason the Government was reaching out for private investors in Morph-X development…fossil fuels were running dry. Unbeknownst to most to avoid a panic, the planet only had about a decade of most resources left before the breakthrough. The upshot was that only half a dozen families invested a majority share in Morph-X technology while most still thought of it as another environmental fad. By the time it rolled out, it ended up replacing fossil fuels altogether and those same families now owned the controlling share of the market on the sole energy resource on the planet. Blaze's family was one of those families.

He went down the hall to his own home gym to begin his morning routine that always started at around 5AM. It was fully equipped with the latest top-of-the-range exercise technology, including a holographic sparring program that allowed him to practice at home to keep him nice and sharp. The gym was also lined with trophies all along the shelves high above the floor. He'd been put into Karate by his parents at a young age to hone his instincts, discipline and killer instinct. Things his parents always believed would serve him well when he inherited the family business that they had built from the ground up by seizing every opportunity by the throat. By the time he was ten he was already a black belt, and by now, he had won dozens of Regional and State championships and had retained the World Championship in his weight category and the open weight category for the last four consecutive years.

His workout always ended with a steam, a spin in a Jacuzzi, a rubdown from a robotic machine, and a shower. He went into his walk in closet, which was larger than many people's apartments and picked out his outfit for the day, some designer jeans and a T-shirt, and a custom made leather jacket. By the time he got to the kitchen, his robotic butler had already fixed his breakfast. He took a cold glass of OJ from its hands.

"Master Blaze, would you like to know the morning headlines?" The butler asked.

"Do I ever?" He snorted. The butler just took his glass as he finished with it, before starting on his cereal. He really didn't care much what was going on in the world beyond his own home. "What's on the schedule?"

"Your Karate class this morning and then you're due in Grid Battleforce for testing this afternoon." The robot butler informed him.

"Any calls from my folks?" Blaze asked.

"Your father just wanted to call and ask when the graduation ceremony is." The butler asked. Blaze's parents were on a business trip as usual, leaving the mansion all to Blaze. He smirked.

"I have to be chosen first." He chuckled. "So…end of the month. Anyway, time I was going. Clean that up will you?"

"Very good sir." The butler responded.

Blaze arrived outside Riptide Gym a short time later, speeding his motorcycle right onto the sidewalk outside, blocking the bike rack. He didn't like his custom sports bike being parked in direct sunlight where its paint could be faded by the sun, besides the local parking attendants knew exactly who the bike belonged to and that it was more than their careers were worth trying to give him a ticket. Blaze strode inside, pulling off his helmet as he went. Ravi was working on some Kata while Roxy appeared to be taking another student through some exercises, standing by a frame holding a board and explaining how to perform a destruction technique. Ravi and Roxy were, alongside him, the strongest contenders for the Ranger program. They also helped him run the Karate classes at the gym. Not that he needed the money or anything, but it was just the done thing for someone in his position to be seen to give a little something back to the community or whatever nonsense all the bleeding heart types always said.

He recognised the girl Roxy was working with, the laundry girl. At least, that was what she was to him. She was on the program but she was one of those scholarship types that places needed to hire to be seen to be "fair" to everyone in society. She was barely scraping together passable grades because she also worked full time in the laundry in addition to her training. He didn't know why Roxy wasted time working with her. First of all, she was competition, someone that could take her place if the rankings really changed in the next couple of months. There was also the fact that soon enough, she'd be the one making sure his uniforms were clean and pressed.

He noticed another of the Grid Battleforce staff a little way off, Nate. The kid with the glasses he always saw following around the Commander like a little puppy. He was wearing gym gear, but was sitting with some paperwork in front of him. Blaze didn't know why he pretended he was at the gym to do anything of value, he could see that he was spending the whole time staring at Laundry Girl. With a smirk on his face, he headed over, scattering the papers on the floor.

"OOPS!" He said insincerely as Nate threw his hands up.

"You did that on purpose!" Nate protested. Blaze just laughed.

"Oh, what is this, the third grade?" Blaze asked him.

"That would require you could get past the third grade without your mom and dad paying off your teachers!" Nate snapped back. Blaze suddenly tensed up.

"What's that meant to mean!"

"Leave him alone Blaze!" Zoey said as she came over.

"I don't recall this being any of your business." Blaze stated, shoving a hand in her face. "Do you think you're important? You're just some scrawny little dweeb Commander Shaw feels sorry for!"

"Blaze!" Roxy protested. He just scoffed and ignored her.

"You know what? You probably think just because you run numbers or polish blasters or do maintenance or something that you're a big thing don't you?" Blaze snapped. "I'm going to be a Ranger! You're just going to be polishing my boots!"

"Blaze, leave him alone!" Zoey protested again.

"It's OK Zoey." Nate replied, before looking to Blaze and laughing. "Wait, do you really think I work maintenance?"

"Or research or something, what do I care?" Blaze asked. Nate just shook his head and started gathering his paperwork. "That's right, just run off…it's not like you'd be prepared to back up that smart mouth of yours is it?"

"Blaze…at least PART of me is smart." Nate replied. "Which is more than I can say about you!"

As he walked away, Roxy turned Blaze towards her.

"What?" He asked.

"Blaze, why did you have to be an asshole to Nate?" Roxy asked him. "He never did anything to you."

"So?" He asked in response.

"So, you don't even know who he is! Hell, I'm not sure I've ever said more than a few words to him either." Roxy told him. "You have no idea what he's capable of!"

"Yeah, and I don't care either." He replied arrogantly. "Now, you wanted to talk to me about something?"

"Blaze, I was just thinking, Zoey's been doing really well in my classes lately." Roxy told him. "I thought she might benefit from taking some of yours."

"Really?" He asked, folding his arms and staring down at her. "What do you think?"

"I think I like a challenge." Zoey replied. He just looked down at her gi.

"Tell me, that belt you're wearing. Is it black or brown?" He asked her.

"No." Zoey said. "But I'm about to sit a grading…"

"Sorry laundry girl, but my class is an advanced class." Blaze interrupted her. He had no interest or patience in teaching beginners. His class was strictly the advanced class, he had Blaze and Roxy work with anyone below a brown belt. He patted her on the head. "Come back when you're worth my time."

"Jerk!" Zoey snapped. Blaze just turned back.

"Oh, and when you're washing my uniforms, use a little less starch. My collar got kind of itchy last week." He taunted her. "Maybe if you spent less time pretending to be more than you are and were a little more like the dweeb, you'd actually do your own job right."

Just then, there was a loud crash. They all turned towards the frame, finding the pieces of the board on the floor, but no one in sight. Blaze walked over to it, picking up the pieces, before turning to the class.

"Who did that?" He demanded. "I asked who did that."

No one answered. Blaze just threw the pieces aside.

"I'm going to get changed." He told them. "Warm up, I want everyone on the mats in five minutes!"

From his spot just by the door, Nate watched Blaze storm into the changing rooms with a little smirk on his face, before blowing on his knuckles, turning and heading out the door.

**A/N:** I am not in the habit of doing two or more of these in a chapter, but I just wanted to point out before I get any comments, yes, I did reference a certain regrettable incident in the Ranger Family and threw in a reference as a way of putting in my two cents. However, while I did cast Blaze in the role of the antagonist, I am well aware Colby Strong is a good friend to Abraham and defended him admirably. I have a great amount of respect and admiration for him for doing so and truly living up to the Ranger spirit. I only cast Blaze in the role because...well...the character fit, but I have absolutely nothing but respect for Colby. The other guy on the other hand...well...I think I made my feelings on that person's behaviour clear.


	13. We Fought The Law And The Law Won

At the school, Calvin and Hayley were sitting with Sarah as she ate the breakfast burrito, they bought her. One of the things that Summer Cove High prided itself on was the fact it took its commitment to providing students affordable meals seriously. The sad fact was, there were kids out there whose families struggled to make ends meet to the point that sometimes the food they got at school was sometimes the only way to be sure they got a good meal at all in the day. The school did do its best to keep costs down while not sacrificing the quality, freshness or nutritional value of the meals they served. By keeping the prices down, the school could ensure even those on Government allowances could get more than just the very basics.

Kody was curled up at Sarah's feet. He was very empathetic, and seemed to know when someone could do with some comfort. That and he was also a very affectionate dog that just loved being petted. He had been around the school so many times most of the kids knew him and there was virtually no one that thought twice about giving him a pat or a scratch. They had hoped that maybe once she had a nice, comforting burrito to concentrate on, maybe she'd start talking about the whole Victor situation. It wasn't a plan that panned out. The one thing Calvin hadn't factored in was that while she was eating, she wasn't talking.

"Hey there guys!" Brody greeted them as he arrived with Emma. "Wow, someone's hungry."

Sarah mumbled something through her food, but kept her mind on the burrito. Brody just shrugged.

"So, how was the weekend?" Calvin asked, realising he wasn't going to get any answers out of Sarah right now.

"Oh, it was a blast!" Emma rushed out as she sat down. "We did some training, went fishing…well, they did I just kind of waved a rod around a bit. Then we started building a computer!"

"Building a computer?" Hayley asked, looking to Brody. "Really?"

"Yeah, dad asked Emma to help set up his computer." Brody informed them. "But it was a bit of an antique so Emma dragged us to some store where she traded in for a bunch of spare parts."

"You're building a computer?" Calvin reiterated. "You know you can buy them, right?"

"Yeah, but if you know what you're doing, which I do if I say so myself, you can always build much better." Emma told them as Sandy headed over from the queue. She put down a bowl of porridge for Emma as she sat down with some toast for herself. "Thanks. So, yeah, by the time I'm finished, he'll have the most high-tech computer in all of Millport."

"I think he would have had that if you bought him an abacus." Brody said as he pointed between Sandy and Emma. "And…how did she know to get you breakfast?"

"The advantage of having to text your sister any time you want to call her for something is you get a lot of practice." Emma told him, holding up her cell phone. "I sent her the message from the door."

"Right, cool." Brody said as he sat down, pulling out a banana and starting to eat. "So, what was the weekend like for you…"

Suddenly, the air was split by an ear-piercing whistle. Everyone in the room other than Sandy clutched their ears. They all watched as Victor and Monty ran into view, grabbing someone out of the lunch line and pulling him away.

"Hey, no cutsies!" Victor declared.

"Wait, what?" The kid asked. "I didn't cut…"

"Dude, you kind of did." Preston told him, cleaning out his ears with a pained expression on his face. The kid had indeed cut in front of him, but right now he was kind of thinking that he'd prefer that to the pain he was feeling right now. "Jeez, Monty, was the whistle really necessary?"

"We'll decide what's necessary!" Monty said, pulling the kid out of line. "Now, name!"

"Monty, you know my name! I sit next to you in History." The kid groaned.

"Are you impeding us in our duties?" Victor asked.

"Duties?" The kid asked. "Dude, seriously if I cut, I'm sorry, I'll go to the back of the line…"

"He seems a little too eager for us to leave." Victor said to Monty. "Makes me wonder what else he's hiding."

"What?" The kid asked. Victor shoved him up against the wall.

"Hands on the wall where I can see them!" Victor ordered him, kicking his feet apart. "Spread your legs! Cover him Monty, I'm going in!"

"Uh, what are you doing?" Brody called over as Victor started frisking the kid.

"I'm searching him for contraband!" Victor declared as he ran his hands over the kid, while Monty kept watch.

"Wait…can you do that?" The kid asked. Victor got right in his ear.

"I don't remember asking you any questions." Victor told him. "That comes later! Alright, you've got nothing on you, but maybe in your locker!"

"OK, I'm pretty sure you can't do that!" The kid declared.

"We'll decide what we can and can't do." Monty told him. "Come on dirtbag!"

"I'm pretty sure I have rights…"

"Yeah, the right to remain SILENT!" Victor declared as he shoved him. "Come on!"

Preston just shook his head in disbelief as he collected his tray and swiped his charge card, before heading to the table.

"Jeez, what was all that about?" He asked, before looking to Sarah. "Uh…Sarah, you um…you got a little…"

"Huh?" She asked, before looking down at her shirt. In the course of watching Victor she had been so distracted she had completely missed her mouth and now had a mixture of beans running down her shirt. "Oh, man I…I gotta go change!"

With that, she ran off.

"What is with her?" Preston asked.

"Who knows?" Sandy asked as she shrugged. "But I'd say Victor and Monty are taking this security thing way too seriously. Um…Hayley, I…got some extra here, I forgot to ask if it was alright for Kody to have some."

"It's alright for him to have some treats now and then." Hayley assured her as she started scratching him around the ears and talking to him.

"Hayley!" Clint called out as he swung past on his rounds, coming over. "Uh…were…were you just barking at your dog?"

"You get used to it!" The others all chorused. Clint just shook his head and decided to get back to the point.

"Hayley, you know the rules, no dogs allowed inside the school." He told her. "I'm going to have to write you up for that."

"What?" Hayley asked with a look of disbelief on her face. "But everybody loves Kody. He's been in here like, a dozen times!"

"A dozen times?" Clint asked, pulling out his citation book and starting to write out tickets. "Well, that's a dozen citations then."

"Oh, come on Clint, it's not like he causes any trouble! He's housebroken! He's well behaved he's…wait…are you actually writing out twelve individual tickets?"

"Wouldn't it be easier to just write 'X12' in the corner or something if you're writing her up for the same offence twelve times?" Calvin asked, only earning himself a smack on shoulder from Brody and a glare from Hayley. That wasn't really the point she was trying to make.

"I'll have you know that all my citation pads are printed on recycled paper." Clint assured her. "And it's the rules, I don't make them, I just enforce them. Oh, here's one for you too Brody."

"What?" Brody asked. "What did I do?"

"You hit Calvin!" Clint reminded him. "No roughhousing!"

Calvin couldn't help giving Brody a smug little grin as he took the citation. Hayley just rolled her eyes.

"OK, even though precisely no one is bothered by Kody being here, I'm just going to take him outside." Hayley declared, picking up her soda can and finishing it, before tossing it into the bin. Clint just sighed.

"And one more citation for that!" He declared.

"What?" She asked. Clint went to the bin, fishing out the can.

"This bin is for trash only. Your can is recyclable." Clint told her. "Simple, right? Don't blame me guys, I'm just doing my job!"

As he walked away with his proud little strut, stopping only to write up another kid for having his feet on a table, Hayley just let out a groan of frustration.

"What is it with security in this place?" She growled.

Just then, their Ninja-Comms bleeped. They all gathered around Brody as he opened his.

"What is it Mick?" He asked.

"We've got Buzz-Cam activity in the area." Mick told them. "In the parking complex two blocks from here."

"At least it's close." Calvin commented.

"Yeah, I wouldn't want to get a FOURTEENTH write-up in one day for being tardy." Hayley complained.

"We'll check it out." Brody assured him, at which they all gathered their belongings and headed out the door.

Meanwhile, over in the parking lot, the Buzz-Cams all landed and got into good position. Skyfire teleported into the area, landing directly in front of a car that was heading for the exit. The driver had to hammer on the brakes to stop from running into him. Skyfire just held up a hand in the 'stop' gesture.

"Apologies citizen!" Skyfire declared as he realised, he had come into his path unintentionally. The driver could only see a strange looking armoured creature standing in front of him that had appeared in a flash of light. He put the car into reverse, racing backwards away from him so quickly in a blind panic that he slammed into another vehicle. Skyfire rushed over and sliced the door off, but as he pulled the driver out, he and the other motorist both panicked and ran off.

"No need to thank me but…hey! You're meant to remain at the scene of an accident!" Skyfire called after them. He just shrugged as he saw them disappear into a stair-well together. "They're probably just worried about blocking the access more than they need to. I'm sure they're swapping insurance details right now."

He saw another motorist, an old lady who was struggling with some groceries to load up her car. He made his way over and grabbed some of the bags.

"Madam, allow me to help you with that." He declared.

"Oh, that's awfully nice of you…" She started to say, before turning around and seeing him. She suddenly went very pale as she saw the creature before her.

"Listen, while I'm helping you, perhaps you could help me. I'm looking for creatures called the Power Rangers." He informed her. "Would you be so kind as to tell me where I could find them?"

The old lady screamed straight in his face and ran off, dropping her groceries, scattering them everywhere as she went.

"Madam, your groceries!" Skyfire called after her. He just sighed. "Well, I can't leave her vehicle unsecured like this, I'll just pack up for her while I'm here."

The Rangers arrived, having sped to the parking lot from the school, before recalling their bikes. When they got there, they found Skyfire finishing loading up the car and closing the trunk while he looked around for someone.

"Alright, there he is." Brody declared. "Everyone fan out."

The Rangers started to move around, trying to form a perimeter, both to get good attack angles, and to figure out if there were any more bystanders to worry about. Skyfire approached a guy as he was about to park in a spot, but the Rangers watched him speed away in a panic.

"Stop! Come back!" Skyfire called after him. "I was only going to ask you where the Power Rangers were!"

"Well, I have to admit, that's a novel approach." Brody declared as he stepped into view. "It's not often people looking for us ask politely. It would be rude of me not to come and answer."

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time I've met a criminal who was too confident to reveal themselves." Skyfire declared. The others started to come out of hiding, completely confused. "Ah, the whole gang is here. Good, that'll save me searching for you all."

"Wait, did he just call us criminals?" Levi asked.

"Surrender now and come with me!" Skyfire declared. "Or there will be…unpleasantness!"

"Oh, I know there's going to be unpleasantness!" Hayley declared; her patience having been worn down to the bone by Clint's over-zealous write-ups. She rushed towards him, somewhat pre-empting the response from the others. They barely even saw Skyfire move as he darted to the side while Hayley surged past, bringing her sword down where he had been. She just stood motionless for a moment, before the sword fell from her hand and she fell to the ground, her suit sparking. Skyfire brought up his katana, pointing it at the others.

"HAYLEY!" Calvin screamed as he ran for Skyfire. The strange creature disarmed him in moments, before throwing him straight through a concrete pillar to the other side of the complex. He pointed once more at the others.

"You can add resisting arrest to your list of crimes!" He declared. "Don't think I'm above using lethal force!"

"Look, I have no idea what this is about and frankly I don't care anymore, you hurt our friends!" Levi declared. "Come on guys, let's take this guy down HARD!"

Back in the Command Centre, Mick was struggling to get a good view on the surveillance cameras. By the time he'd hacked into the feed, the fight was already underway. Emma was working to help him get a good view.

"Man, these cameras are not good." Mick told her. "All I can get is blurry images or…or clouds of dust!"

"Just as well I got access to better cameras then." Emma told him.

"You did?" Mick asked. "How?"

"Use your opponent's strength against him." She declared with a smug little smirk.

"You…you hacked into the Galaxy Warriors feed?" Mick asked her. She just nodded.

"Why go for cameras older than I am when they have the best footage available?" She asked him. Mick just watched the broadcast.

"Man, this doesn't look good." Mick commented. "Turn up the sound, will you?"

Emma did as she was told, letting Mick hear the battle in all its brutality. The Rangers and the creature were racing around the complex, all aiming to get that once decisive move off. The Rangers had taken the battle to the roof level in order to get more room to move, but it looked like their enemy was just as dangerous on open ground as he was in an enclosed space. His speed was incredible, while sacrificing nothing of his power.

"This isn't good, Preston's already down…now Sandy!" Mick said, looking decidedly worried.

In quick succession they all started to fall to Skyfire's blade. Brody was struggling to stay on his feet as he clashed swords with him, locking him in place in the vain hopes it would give someone, anyone on the team, time to get back into the fight.

"Give it up evil-doer, you're no match for me!" Skyfire declared.

"You know, that's meant to be OUR line!" Brody grunted.

"Enough of your nonsense criminal!" Skyfire declared as he sliced Brody across the chest, de-morphing him before kicking him away. Brody tumbled away, coming to rest by the others. Skyfire's armour bore the scars of the Ranger's attacks, and his movements indicated his injuries, but his will was driving him onward with insane levels of dedication. "You will pay for what you've done to Badonna and return that which you have stolen from her!"

"Stolen?" Levi asked.

"No matter how strong the forces of evil are, the law ALWAYS wins!" Skyfire declared. "Now, I'm giving you one last chance, surrender now and I promise that no further harm will come to you! Sheriff Skyfire is a man of his word!"

Mick backed away from the monitor as he heard this.

"Mick?" Emma asked.

"Brody, get the hell out of there!" Mick said over the communicator.

"What?" Brody asked.

"Get the hell out of there NOW!" Mick yelled in a very uncharacteristic tone of sheer terror. Brody could see the wisdom in a tactical retreat, but he could tell there was something more going on.

"Guys, on my mark." Brody said, preparing a smoke bomb. They all did the same. "NINJA VANISH!"

The all tossed their smoke bombs, covering their escape. By the time Skyfire could see again, they were long gone.

"COWARDS!" Skyfire declared. "You can't escape the long arm of the law for long! Sheriff Skyfire ALWAYS gets his man!"

Back at the Ranger Base, the team were licking their wounds and taking stock of their defeat. It wasn't the first time they'd had to pick themselves up after a defeat.

"I have no doubt I'm going to end up with some serious arthritis in my old age." Preston muttered as Levi checked him over. "You know…presuming I live that long."

"We've dealt with brutal opponents before, but that guy…I don't think there's even a word for what he is." Levi agreed. "Mick, can you review that footage, tell us something we can use against this guy?"

"I…I already know something." Mick told them. "I know who this guy is."

"You do?" Sarah asked.

"You told us to run as soon as you heard his name." Brody recalled. "You do know who he is."

"Well, I…know OF him, by reputation." Mick explained. "And trust me, it really isn't good."

"We kind of got that part." Sandy muttered. "What is his deal? I mean, what was he talking about? All that stuff about what we did to Badonna and calling us criminals?"

"And he called himself Sheriff Skyfire?" Hayley asked. "Does he think he's a good guy or something?"

"Oh…that…that is…REALLY not good!" Mick said, taking a deep breath. "OK, how can I put this delicately? Sheriff Skyfire is…well…"

"Brutal?" Sarah asked. "Confused?"

"Evil?" Brody asked.

"He's…he's a lunatic!" Mick told him. "There's an organisation called SPD, they're trying to bring law and order to the universe, they're currently working on bringing more and more systems into the fold and their jurisdiction. Skyfire used to work for them."

"There's a space police force?" Calvin asked. "On any other day I'd think that was cool."

"What do you mean he used to work for them?" Hayley asked.

"Well, he was a little overzealous in his duties." Mick explained. "Like, the kind of overzealous that leaves as much destruction of property and loss of life in his wake as the people he was going after. Eventually SPD Command cut their losses and fired him, but that only made things a thousand times worse. He gave himself the title of Sheriff and now…now he pretty much deals with criminals any way he sees fit without any kind of oversight."

"Even if those people aren't criminals?" Sarah asked. He just nodded.

"I think it's fair to say that he's under the impression you guys are criminals." Mick told them. "And if his reputation is anything to go by, the one thing Sheriff Skyfire does NOT do is give up once he's on the tail of a fugitive."

"Speaking of over-zealous law enforcement." Hayley said as her cell phone bleeped, signalling she got a text-message. "That's Principal Hastings. Apparently, she wants to talk to me about all my recent citations!"

With that, she stormed out of the base, heading for the Principal's Office. Brody looked to Mick.

"So, what do we do about Skyfire?" He asked.

"I…really wish I knew." Mick told him. "But one thing I do know, we better figure it out fast. He'll be looking for you, and there's a reason his name is so feared. He might be a lunatic, but he is REALLY good at what he does!"

"And on THAT cheerful note, time for morning class!" Sandy grumbled as they all started to file out of the room.


	14. Rules are Rules

On Skyfire's ship, there was a flash of light and Cosmo appeared.

"Intruder alert! Intruder…" The alarm started to blare, before he attached a device to the main computer and activated it. He quickly checked to see if he had managed to shut it down in time before the signal got to Skyfire's communicator.

"That was too close!" He breathed a sigh of relief as he removed the device. "Thank you Wrench!"

He started to look through the ship, looking for the custody cells. When he got there, he found Blammo pacing. He saw Cosmo and ran to the door.

"YOU!" He yelled, slamming the door. "You better hope I don't get out of here you backstabbing…"

"Shut up will you, I'm here to get you out!" He told him. Blammo just looked confused.

"You're…you're here to get me out?" He asked. "But you let Skyfire arrest me!"

"Yes, and now we've got him going after the Rangers because he thinks we're 'good citizens' and they stole from us." Cosmo explained. "So, while the Rangers are busy with him, you can go set up a nice little surprise at that school of theirs."

"So, you let me get arrested as part of a plan?" Blammo asked. "You know that psycho rarely arrests anyone right?"

"Why do you think we tried to appease him?" Cosmo asked. "Now, shut up for a moment while I figure out how Wrench's lock pick works…ah! There we go!"

The door opened and allowed Blammo to leave. Cosmo gestured him closer.

"Now, get down to the school and set your little surprise." Cosmo told him. "It won't be long before the system reboots and that lunatic realises, we were here."

With that, they teleported out.

Meanwhile, Skyfire was at the parking garage, looking over his "crime scene". He had battled the Rangers once, and while they had escaped, he was still determined to bring them to justice. It was an inevitability in law enforcement that sometimes fugitives got away. The criminal was a slippery beast, fast, deceitful, full of tricks. It went with the territory. Rather than stand and face responsibility for their actions, a criminal would do virtually anything to avoid the consequences. They would run, they would hide, they would set up others to take blame for them, they would beg, they would bribe…he had seen it all in his time. Sadly, sometimes these approaches worked. Of course, justice was more than just the actions of a brave few that were willing to act. Justice was a force of nature, a cosmic force that would catch up with everyone eventually, whether it was at the hands of intended victims, the hands of former comrades, in a courtroom or on the end of his sword, sooner or later, justice came to everyone.

Skyfire had a well-earned reputation for bringing down criminals that others couldn't. His arrest list was rather short as of late, but the Universe's Most Wanted list was completely cleared out by him on more than one occasion. While his skills in battle were unmatched, he would never have caught more than a few of those fugitives if he was nothing more than a good swordsman. He was also a talented detective.

He was inspecting some of the damage, trying to look for anything that was left behind. Criminals were almost as good at covering their tracks as law men were…the emphasis was on 'almost'. It was always possible that they had left something behind that they didn't think about. He once managed to confirm a suspect was in the area because he had forgotten to clear out his tea pot of the special tea he had to take for his medical conditions. He'd remembered everything else, completely cleaned out his warehouse, even scrubbing his office with bleach, but he had taken his medication only moments before he fled. The Rangers had to run from a battle, it stood to reason that they didn't necessarily have time to pick up after themselves.

He scurried around the crime scene, inspecting the damage left behind. There'd been a car accident before the fight, that did account for some but he concentrated on areas he had seen the Rangers in during the fight. There was a cracked support pillar where he had thrown the Yellow Ranger. It didn't provide him much, the scanners in his helmet didn't detect genetic material but since the Rangers wore full bodysuits, he was sure it was a long shot anyway.

He'd gone back to the roof, to where the fight ended. It was here he started to get the other hand. He didn't understand how their powers worked but he had seen their suits disappear. If they were going to leave anything, it was going to be up here. He found a car windshield that had been smashed, and remembered throwing the Green Ranger into it as her suit disappeared. Her head hit the windshield. He started to scan the glass and found a little piece of hair and some blood. He took out some tweezers and started picking pieces up, putting them into a sample jar.

"Computer, I'm sending you a sample." Skyfire told him. "Tell me anything you can about this suspect."

The sample jar teleported away at which he started to look around for more samples. He found a few things scattered around, mostly thinks like gum wrappers, cigarette ends and suchlike, nothing terribly interesting or that he wouldn't expect to find, but he did find plenty of damage. He was collecting some samples of metal from a groove cut into some brickwork where he remembered one of the Rangers' swords hitting, when he heard someone behind him.

"Freeze!" He heard someone call out. "Hands where I can see them!"

Skyfire turned around slowly and saw the two men before him. They were both armed, one with a shotgun and the other with a pistol. He could see they were wearing uniforms and saw shield-shaped badges on their shirts.

"Are you law enforcement?" Skyfire asked them.

"Yeah, we're cops!" The one with the shotgun yelled at him. "Now, put down the butter knife and come here with your hands where we can see them!"

"Fear not fellow law man, we're on the same side." Skyfire declared cheerfully. He held up his own identification. "Sheriff Skyfire, scourge of intergalactic criminals at your service."

"Sheriff?" The one with the pistol asked. "So, you're what? Some kind of space cop?"

"I'm an agent of justice, just like you!" Skyfire told them. "Say, your jurisdiction is in this area. Have either of you heard of the Power Rangers?"

"You're kidding right?" One of them asked. "Who hasn't heard about the Power Rangers?"

"I must admit, my knowledge of them is lacking. I'm a little ignorant of the comings and goings in this sector." Skyfire told them. "I wish to bring them in on suspicion of a number of crimes…"

"Wait, what?" The one with the shotgun asked, lowering it. "You want to bring in…?"

"Well, it's about time we got some help!" The one with the pistol said with a little smile as he put his pistol away. "They've been causing chaos around here!"

The one with the shotgun just looked to his colleague curiously. There were, sadly, still some cops on SCPD that believed the Rangers attracted more trouble than they prevented. The department now had an officially mandated hands-off policy but that didn't mean there weren't still cops out there that wouldn't love an opportunity to be rid of the Rangers and, hopefully with them, all the monsters that came to look for them.

"Really?" Skyfire asked. "They've been causing trouble around here?"

"Oh, absolutely! They tear up whole neighbourhoods every other day!" The cop told him. "We'd love to do something about it, but we're woefully underequipped, and the Department…the chief has actually ordered us off them. I'm sure you know how red tape is."

"Yes, I am well aware of how restricting political decisions of the upper levels can be." Skyfire replied bitterly. He had experienced it himself. SPD command was always complaining about excessive force, violation of jurisdiction, destruction of property...by the time they fired him he was convinced that the biggest obstacle to justice was upper command. He felt no regret at all in telling Commander Birdie to his face that he would continue to bring down criminals wherever he went, with or without his blessing. He looked near a car where he had seen the yellow one fall. He was collecting more samples when he found something, a small plastic card. He picked it up, inspecting it.

"So, where can we find them?" Skyfire asked, putting it away.

"Normally they show up wherever there's uh…" The cop started to say, before thinking about it. "Someone that looks like you!"

"I'm sorry?" Skyfire asked.

"You know…someone that's not from around here!" He clarified. Skyfire just recoiled.

"They're racists too?" He asked. "Well, they can re-think their prejudice in prison…if they make it that far! Space Jump!"

With that, he disappeared. The cop with the shotgun just looked to his colleague.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"You heard that guy, he's after the Rangers!" He replied with a smirk. "The chief says we can't go after the Rangers. He never said anything about that nut-job."

Blammo teleported into the yard out the back of the school, taking a quick look around to make sure he wasn't seen. Thanks to Odious' time pretending to be Principal Hastings, they already knew that the Rangers tended to use the yard for training. He pulled a sphere out of his body.

"Badonna told me to set the timer for five PM. That way only the Rangers should be around." He reminded himself as he set the timer. "Now, where to put it that's out of sight? Ah, here we are!"

He ran over to a trash can and put the bomb inside.

"Now all we have to do is wait." He cackled. "If Skyfire doesn't finish the Rangers then the bomb will!"

Hayley made her way towards the Principal's office, passing Trevor on the way. He was just setting up some signs around a spill on the floor while he waited for a janitor to mop it up.

"Hayley." Trevor said, seeing her go. "Shouldn't you be heading to class?"

"Yes, but apparently Principal Hastings wants to see me about these!" She said, showing him a handful of citation tickets. Trevor just shook his head and followed her in. When he got there, Clint was waiting along with Principal Hastings.

"Great, you're here too." Hayley groaned. "Is this really necessary?"

"Hayley, by school policy you're meant to be summoned to the Principal's office if you receive one serious citation or more than three minor citations in the same day." Principal Hastings reminded her. "You've received 13."

"Thirteen?" Trevor asked. "How did you manage to get 13 citations?"

"Trevor, please stay out of this." Hayley told him. "This is ridiculous. Have you even checked those citations?"

"Yes, I have." Principal Hastings told her.

"Well, then you'll know that one of them was for putting my can in the wrong bin. That's…that's nothing! A warning would have been more than enough!"

"You'd already been written up for a citation." Clint told her. "Every student gets one warning, but once they've been given a citation, any other infractions go straight to citation. It's a measure designed to hold people to account for revenge misbehaviour, it's all in the handbook. I don't make the rules, I just enforce them."

"Twelve of them were all for the SAME THING!" Hayley protested. "Sure, maybe I shouldn't have had Kody in the canteen, but the only reason Clint wrote me twelve citations is because I said Kody had been there a dozen times to make a point that it wasn't an issue!"

"I can write people up for infractions I didn't witness in the event I have sufficient evidence or a confession from the perpetrator." Clint told her. "I don't make the rules…"

"I KNOW!" Hayley groaned. "Come on principal Hastings, you can see how silly this all is?"

"I'm sorry Hayley but I have full confidence in Clint's judgement." She replied.

"But is there any need for all this to go into record?" Trevor asked, seeing an opportunity to step in and defend Hayley, to try and get on her good side. "Look, I'm not saying damn the rules, but when I was a cop if I enforced every single law I ever saw being broken I'd have been so snowed under with pointless paperwork I'd never have got anything done and people that had information of really serious crimes would never have talked to me!"

"Mr Marx, I appreciate your input but this isn't a matter than needs it." Principal Hastings told him.

"But Hayley's a good kid! You know that she's…"

"Mr Marx, Clint is your superior and he has brought this matter to me, this really isn't your concern!" She told him.

"I've been Hayley's step-father since she was…"

"And while you're wearing that uniform and, on my time, you're my employee first!" Principal Hastings told him abruptly. She just sighed. "Clint, thank you, I'll take it from here and e-mail you my judgement. In the meantime, perhaps you might want to speak to Mr Marx."

Clint tapped Trevor on the shoulder and guided him out the room. They closed the door behind them. Hayley looked to Principal Hastings.

"Principal Hastings, you know as well as I do that Clint takes things WAY too seriously!" Hayley continued. "This is all just silly. Maybe you could just…"

"Look the other way?" Principal Hastings suggested. Hayley just nodded.

"Well…yes." She answered. "I mean, it's not like I don't have plenty of other things to worry about without having a mark on my permanent record…"

"I know full well the responsibilities you have, but you should know that doesn't mean you can do as you please!" She interrupted Hayley. Principal Hastings just pulled off her glasses. "Now, I let a hell of a lot slide with you and the others because I know what you have to do, but even I have to have limits. What do you expect me to say to Clint if I start throwing all his citations against you and your friends in the trash and ignoring them?"

"But Principal Hastings…"

"Hayley, I've come up with a compromise." She told her. "You're going to serve detention…"

"Are you serious?"

"…AFTER SCHOOL!" She continued, raising her voice to drown out Hayley's interruption. "For the rest of the week. Today you'll help Clint sort the recycling. If you do that, then these write-ups won't have to go on your permanent record."

"But Principal…"

"Learn when someone is doing you a favour Hayley!" She snapped. "I'll e-mail over my ruling to Clint. Meet him in the yard at the end of the day."

Hayley just forced a little smile, before storming out the door, almost shoving over Victor and Monty as they were coming in.

"Wow, someone's in a hurry." Monty commented. "Maybe we should write her…"

"Just sit down Monty." Principal Hastings told him.

"You wanted to see us?" Victor asked.

"Yes, kindly take a seat." She told them. "Gentlemen, I've received some complaints about the two of you."

"Complaints?" Victor asked. "Complaints about what?"

"Oh, where should I start?" She asked, putting her glasses on and sitting behind her desk, smiling at them. "Gentlemen, which one of you can tell me what the Fourth Amendment is?"

Skyfire arrived back on his ship, heading into his kitchen.

"Computer, have you analysed those samples yet?" Skyfire asked.

"I'm afraid not. There was an unexpected power outage which halted all non-essential systems for a period of 37.96 seconds." The computer told him. "As a result, the data was lost and I had to begin the scans all over again."

"Power outage? Is everything alright?" Skyfire asked.

"All systems did come back up." The computer told him.

"I suppose it's been a while since I did an update. I promise you I'll stop off somewhere we can update once we bring these Rangers to justice." He assured the computer.

"That would be greatly appreciated." The computer replied. "Now, which program would you like to watch while you wait?"

"I feel like something spicy." Skyfire said as he started looking out some equipment. "Search the data files for something with a bit of kick."

"There's a recent broadcast from Triforia which details how to make a spicy curry…"

"That sounds perfect!" He replied. "Put it on the main screen. I'll just go get my spice rack!"

At the end of the day, the Rangers split up to head their own ways. Emma had to put in an appearance at home, having been with the Romeros all weekend, and the others had booked some time in the gym to get some training done.

All except Hayley of course. She was still fuming as she trudged towards the loading entrance to meet with Clint when she found Victor in the canteen writing something out. She was a little surprised to see him still there.

"Victor, what are you still doing here?" She asked. "The bell went ages ago."

"A little punishment detail." Victor told her, gesturing to what he was writing out. Hayley just looked to it curiously.

"Illegal search and seizure?" She asked. "You're writing out the Fourth Amendment?"

"And the Fifth apparently." Victor told her. "There were complaints about how Monty and I handle things."

"Well…I guess you did go a little over the top with that guy in the canteen line." She responded.

"I just…I just want to do a good job." Victor sighed. Hayley could tell he was really upset about this. "Clint blew his stack with us. He told us if he receives one more complaint, he's not only going to take our badges but he might try and get us expelled."

"That's…that's a bit extreme isn't it?" She asked. "I mean, sure you went over the line but…expulsion?"

"I really just want to do a good job you know?" He asked. "But it looks like I have a lot to learn."

"Well, I'll leave you to it." She answered. "I need to go before he tries to get me expelled too."

She continued on her way, finding Clint out in the yard, going through all the bins. He was covered all the way up to his elbows in filth Hayley didn't even want to imagine as he went through the trash, separating it out, muttering as he did so.

"Plastic, plastic, aluminium…damn these kids!" He grumbled, before he saw Hayley arriving. "Hayley, you're late!"

"Yeah, sorry I'm a little late, I got…held up and…"

She looked around seeing the mess around him. There were trash bins on one side and recycling bins on the back of a truck, but he was still going through them all and picking through to find things that were in the wrong bins.

"Wait, you already sorted them, why are you doing it again?" She asked.

"Just because the bins are marked doesn't mean everyone pays attention. And no, it's not my job, but someone has to do it, and you weren't here." He said as he pulled a large metal sphere out of one of the trash cans. "Like this, it's made of metal, which means it's recyclable. It'd have taken a kid two seconds to turn slightly to the right and put it in the correct bin."

"I was only a couple of minutes late. Now Principal Hastings is just going to find another punishment for me." Hayley muttered. "I just wish you'd waited."

"Well, sadly the world doesn't wait for when it's convenient for you." Clint told her. "The recycling centre closes at five so I need to get this sorted and out of here by then."

"The recycling centre closes at five?" Hayley asked, checking her watch. It was now almost four o'clock. If Clint didn't leave soon, he'd never get there in time. "I didn't know that."

"You don't need to know everything, just obey the rules. Even we have rules we have to follow." Clint told her as Victor and Monty showed up.

He picked up a rag and started cleaning his hands off.

"Now, I need to get to the recycling centre." He told her. "Don't worry, I'll tell Principal Hastings you showed up."

With that, Clint, Victor and Monty got into the truck and drove off. Hayley just rolled her eyes.

"Well, that's one less thing to worry about." She muttered. "I guess I can get a little training done before I go home now."

"That's going to have to wait." Brody told her as he ran into view. "Mick just called, he just checked the footage and he saw one of Badonna's monsters in the school earlier."

He showed her a tablet, showing her Blammo arriving in the school.

"That is one of the ugliest monsters I've ever seen." She commented.

"He put something in one of these trash cans." Brody told her. "We need to find out what it is."

"Wait…zoom in on that." She told him. Brody paused the feed and zoomed in. Hayley saw Blammo putting a large, metal sphere into the trash. "I've seen that. Clint said it was made of metal so he took it to the recycling plant."

"Uh…guys, we have a REALLY big problem!" Sarah told them. "I just did a quick scan and there's residue of explosives in this trash can."

"Explosives?" Brody asked. "He was planting a bomb?"

"A bomb that Clint's now taking to the recycling plant!" Hayley shrieked. "There must be dozens, maybe hundreds of people working there! We have to stop him!"

With that, they all quickly morphed, before summoning their mega morph cycles. They could only hope that they got to Clint before the bomb went off.


	15. The Rules Are For Everyone

Up on his ship, Skyfire was tucking into his latest culinary creation, a Triforian curry that was incredibly spicy. He was a man of very few pleasures. To him, his obsession, his driving force in life was the relentless pursuit of evil-doers and bringing those that preyed on others to justice. His ship had only a few creature comforts, he preferred to dedicate most of the budget he could scrape together from like-minded individuals and confiscated proceeds of crime on technology that aided in his crusade, but the one thing in life he loved almost as much as dispensing swift and unforgiving justice was food.

There was a literal universe of wonderful flavours in existence. Meats, fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices…they could be blended into all manner of wonderful creations that could evoke a myriad of emotions and delight the senses. It wasn't just simple sustenance, but tastes, smells, textures could make someone feel and think of the most wonderful things. Whenever he had Xyberian spiced nachos, he would always be reminded of his first arrest, a sneak-thief he caught lifting small items out of people's bags while they were sat in a diner. Andresian stew, a dish that was sadly no longer available from its home world, reminded him of the time he helped break up a worker's trade dispute that had turned violent. His kitchen was almost as well-stocked as his armoury, and his database was set up to pick up the latest shows from across the stars so he could try all manner of new recipes.

"Did you enjoy your lunch?" The computer asked.

"Absolutely exquisite." Skyfire declared, shoving the last mouthful in his mouth before licking his fingers and replacing his helmet. "I couldn't possibly eat another bite!"

"Then I suppose you'd like a container for the leftovers." The computer suggested. He shook his head.

"No, the flavours are of such a delicate balance I don't think they'll ever be the same after freezing." He responded. "I'll give some to the prisoner."

"Prisoner?" The computer asked.

"Yes, just because he's in custody doesn't mean we can't treat him well until we turn him in at the nearest outpost." Skyfire replied heading to the pot and spooning some into a dish. He started to head towards custody.

"But sir, there are currently no inhabitants of the custody block." The computer told him. Skyfire just chuckled.

"I already promised you that I'd get an upgrade." Skyfire reminded the computer. "There's no reason to act all goofy to convince me you need it."

"Sir, I am not joking." The computer told him. "All twelve custody cells are currently unoccupied."

Skyfire headed into the custody block, aiming to prove to the computer that Blammo was there by confirming it himself. However, when he got to the cell, it was indeed empty.

"What?" He yelled as he dropped the curry, the dish smashing on the floor and splattering it all over the deck. "Computer, where is the inhabitant of this cell?"

"As I said, there are currently…"

"Well, I can see there's no one there now!" He yelled. "Blammo was in here! Where is he now?"

"My database shows no record of Blammo having been apprehended. Performing a scan now." The computer told him, before coming up with an alert. "I don't currently have a location for Blammo, but a device bearing his signature is currently on Earth heading at speed along a road in Summer Cove."

"He must be trying to create a distraction to cover his escape." Skyfire declared. "But I cannot allow the device to trigger and harm innocents. I have to go and…"

"Sir, I also have footage showing the Power Rangers following the vehicle." The computer told him. Skyfire's fists clenched.

"They must be making sure it gets to its target!" Skyfire snarled, snatching up his sword. "Space Jump!"

Down on Earth, the Rangers were in desperate pursuit of Clint, Victor and Monty. They had now figured out that Blammo had left a bomb in the school, no doubt set for a time when they would be in the school training, but Clint had unwittingly mistaken it for recycling because it was made of metal. Although they doubted that Badonna cared about casualties, the fact the bomb hadn't gone off already had them thinking it was probably set for a time when the Rangers would be in the school training but after it had closed. The casualties would have been minimal, but now unbeknownst to him, Clint was taking it to a recycling centre which had to have dozens, perhaps even hundreds of employees who were all looking forward to the end of their shift, blissfully unaware that any minute Clint was going to deliver a deadly weapon.

He had a bit of a head start on them, but with the speed of their Mega Morph Cycles and a complete disregard for road traffic laws, they managed to catch up to him just as he pulled into the parking lot.

Clint, Victor and Monty all dismounted, at which he gestured to the back.

"Come on guys, let's get this all in." Clint told them. "If we hurry, we should get it all in before the centre…"

"Hayley screamed as they roared into the parking lot, quickly abandoning their bikes. They didn't have time to park them properly, not when they had no idea how long they still had until the bomb went off. Clint's eyes went wide and his face split into a bright smile.

"Holy moly, it's the Power Rangers!" He squealed in delight, bouncing excitedly. Victor and Monty, knowing who the team were, were a little more subdued, but they did know that seeing them show up morphed was not a good sign.

"Yeah…the Rangers, wow!" Victor declared. "That's really…exciting! Wow!"

"I love you guys; I really want to be just like you! That's why I do this job!" Clint rushed out in a childish babble. "I mean, I can't do all the kicks or the flips or…well…any of that stuff but I really want to make the world a better…hey, what are you guys doing?"

"Clint!" Hayley called out, grabbing him by the shoulders. He just looked to her curiously.

"You…you know my name?" He asked. "How do you know my name?"

"Uh…"

"It's on your badge." Victor interjected. Sarah smiled a little. That was pretty quick thinking from Victor to cover for them. Clint looked down, realising he was right, his badge did indeed have his name on it.

"What are you doing with my recycling?" Clint asked.

"Clint, we're looking for something in your recycling. Something a monster might have slipped in there." She told him. "We think you're carrying a bomb."

"A bomb!" Victor screamed. "Do you know what it looks like?"

"It's a metal sphere…"

"On it!" Clint declared, running to the back of the truck and scrambling inside, shoving Brody and Calvin out the way. He went to one of the bins and opened it out, pulling it out in seconds.

"Wow, that's…that's impressive!" Hayley commented.

"I always separate the recycling myself!" He declared proudly as he handed it over to Brody. He took it out of the back of the truck, inspecting the bomb.

"OK, does anyone know how we defuse this thing?"

"Probably not within the next thirty seconds." Sarah told him.

"I have an idea." Hayley declared. "Ninja Earth Attack!"

She opened up a hole in the ground, before tossing the bomb inside. They all turned away and covered up as the bomb went off. Fortunately, Hayley had managed to make the pit deep enough to avoid any major damage. The car park would need to be resurfaced and there were some car alarms going off but compared to what would have happened if he took it into the recycling centre, it was a definite win. The workers at the recycling centre all flooded out to see what the commotion was, finding the Rangers still shielding Clint, Monty and Victor. They all slowly got up, beginning to part.

"That was WAY too close!" Victor said with a sigh of relief and a huge smile on his face. "That was some quick thinking."

"Clint, if you hadn't been so diligent sorting the school's trash, we'd never have found that bomb." Hayley told him. He just smiled brightly.

"What can I say? I just do my job and try to make my little bit of the world a better place!" He told her. "I just…never thought it'd be THIS important."

"Yeah, well, everyone's safe now, we should probably get going." Brody said. "Uh…Pink? You can let go of him now."

"Huh?" Sarah asked, before realising she was still clutching tightly to Victor, her arms wrapped around him from when she used her body to shield him from any flying debris from the blast. Even Victor didn't seem to realise that she was still holding him. "Oh…uh…yeah..."

"Thanks." Victor said, looking to her. "Uh…all of you! For uh…saving all of us!"

Just then, there was a flash of light and Skyfire appeared. The Rangers all groaned.

"Aw man, not this guy again!" Preston whined.

"Look, can we not do this?" Sandy asked. "You know, beat each other's brains out another time?"

"Who's that guy?" Victor asked.

"I am Sheriff Skyfire! Scourge of law-breakers everywhere!" Skyfire called out, before pointing at the Rangers. "I'm here for these criminals!"

"Criminals?" One of the workers at the plant asked. "Are you insane?"

"Yeah, they just saved everyone here!" Monty informed him.

"Stand back and let justice be done!" Skyfire roared as he ran towards them, drawing his sword in a flash of light as he went. The Rangers were all thrown back straight through the wall into the recycling centre. Skyfire ran in after them, completely oblivious to the protests of all the workers outside.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Blammo was on the stage with Cosmo, watching the action on the big screen as the battle raged.

"Look at that ladies and Gentlemen, the legendary Sheriff Skyfire is on fire!" He cackled as he watched the action. "OOH, I'm not an expert on human anatomy but I don't think a human spine is meant to bend that way! The Pink Ranger's going to be feeling that in the morning!"

"Talk about rough justice!" Badonna laughed as she watched the action. "Now this is the kind of action I like to see!"

"It looks as if Skyfire is closing in on another successful hunt." Cosmo agreed, lighting up a cigar. "Now comes my favourite part of the game. Sudden Death!"

Down in the recycling centre, the Rangers were getting pummelled from pillar to post. Skyfire was absolutely merciless once he smelled blood in the water. Being used to taking on powerful enemies and in many instances being outnumbered, he had learned long ago never to give anyone a chance to recover once he had the advantage. His initial strike had scattered the Rangers and left them reeling and he had spent the rest of that time preventing them from getting their bearings as he went after them.

He sent Brody falling from a high walkway and leapt down after him. By now, the Rangers were all assembled in one space, just as he'd planned.

"Look, you have this all wrong, we're not the bad guys!" Sarah screamed.

"We don't want to fight you; we know you think you're on the right side but you're not!" Preston rushed out. "Badonna's using you!"

"It's too late to beg for mercy now!" Skyfire declared. "I'm arresting you on suspicion of grand theft, destruction of property, improper use of explosives…"

"Those were NOT our explosives!" Hayley yelled. "We stopped the bomb!"

"…assaulting an officer of the law, resisting arrest and ruining my curry!" He yelled, before powering up his blade. "Justice Strike!"

He rushed towards the Rangers, but as they all flinched, waiting for the attack to hit home, they were surprised when it didn't hit home. As he rushed towards them, the sword was wrenched out of his hand and spun through the air up to the ceiling. He looked up to see that it was drawn to an electro magnet. Victor and Monty were at the controls.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"I could ask you the same question!" Clint said, stepping between the Rangers and Skyfire, holding his arms open wide. "What the HELL are you doing?"

"Step aside, I don't want to harm a fellow officer of the law." Skyfire told him, pointing to the Rangers. "I'm in pursuit of those criminals…"

"Criminals?" Clint asked him. "And what crime have they committed?"

"They stole the Nexus Prism from Badonna…"

"And what evidence do you have of that accusation?" Clint interrupted him. "What other than an accusation from someone you don't know do you have that proves for a fact that the Rangers have done anything wrong?"

"They…they fought against me…"

"You attacked them!" Clint yelled.

"They planted that bomb with their accomplice Blammo…"

"And you have exactly what that shows you that they have anything to do with this 'Blammo' character?" Clint asked him. He started to step up to Skyfire, getting into his face. "They stopped the bomb! They risked their lives to protect everyone in this plant!"

"But…but…"

"In fact, the only one I can see around here that's done anything wrong is YOU!" He yelled, slamming his hands into Skyfire's chest, shoving him back. Skyfire didn't want to strike a fellow lawman, he was stunned by Clint's assertion. "Look around at this place! Do you have any idea what it'll cost to repair all these damages? To get this place back up and running? Do you have any idea how much recycling will have to be re-routed to other centres and for what? Some unfounded accusation you didn't even bother following up on?"

"I…"

"You know, it's people like you that make me sick to my stomach!" Clint screamed at him, prodding him in the chest angrily with a finger. "I applied for the Police Academy five times! I washed out FIVE TIMES! Between my asthma and my flat feet, I couldn't make it through physical training but I kept trying and when they barred me from trying again, I became a security guard! You want to know why?"

He shoved him roughly again.

"Because I BELIEVE in justice! I believe in doing the right thing! I WANT to help people! I WANT to make the world a better place, even if all I can do is work to improve my tiny little piece of it!" He continued to rant. "Do you think I don't know what kids at the school say to me? That they don't take me seriously? That they think I just enforce pointless rules because it makes me feel like a big man whenever I write out a citation, I know most of them will just throw straight in the trash? I know they think I'm a joke, but I do what I do because it's what I can to make them a little safer and their lives a little better!"

He shoved Skyfire again as he started to stammer.

"So, when I hear about people like you! People that have everything I ever wanted, that are doing what I would love to be able to do and they act like this? It pisses me off!" He yelled, by now with tears in his eyes. "Because despite all the stories, despite all the horrible things I read in papers every day, that I see on the news every day about some cop that plants evidence or some cop that beats up a suspect or shoots someone or takes bribes, I still believe, REALLY believe, right here in my heart that the majority of people that go into the service do so for the right reasons! They genuinely want to help! But when people like you go around doing as you damn well please without any thought for the consequences you just make it that much harder, that much more difficult for people to take the ones that want to help seriously and trust them!"

"I…I…I…"

"What we have is a position of authority, a position of trust, which is why the first thing we have to do is lead by example! We have to be above reproach! We have to be held accountable for our actions otherwise people stop trusting us and then what? Then no one talks to us, no one comes to us for help and it just makes it that much harder for those of us doing our job right to do the work we're entrusted with!" Clint screamed at him. "And that is why people like you should face the fullest and most severe consequences of the law you claim to uphold."

There was an eerie silence as he finished. Victor and Monty, the Rangers, even Skyfire couldn't bring themselves to say anything. Eventually, Skyfire just bowed his head.

"I'm…I'm sorry." He replied in a whisper.

"I'm not saying we always do things the best way." Brody told him as he got up. "But Badonna has lied to you. The Nexus Prism was never hers to begin with."

"Badonna's been attacking the Earth for ages." Calvin told him. Just then, Blammo appeared behind him.

"Blammo!" Skyfire declared as he saw him.

"You ruined my plan!" Blammo screamed petulantly. "You ruined a perfectly good bomb!"

"He's the one that planted the bomb?" Brody asked.

"You're damn right I did!" Blammo sneered.

"I'll give you one chance to surrender Blammo!" Skyfire warned him. Monty turned off the electro magnet, at which his sword fell to the ground. Skyfire walked over and picked it up. "Surrender now, and I might still have some curry left over for you."

"Not gonna happen!" Blammo told him. The Rangers all stepped up.

"I can't ask you to get involved." Skyfire stated. "I caused all of this. It's my job to bring him in."

"Well, it's our planet he's threatening and we don't believe in holding grudges." Brody assured him. "So, you fancy a helping hand just this once?"

"Consider yourselves temporary deputies." He told them. "Ready Rangers?"

"Ready!" They all called out as Blammo powered up his first attack.


	16. Rules Can Be Flexible

The audience in the Warrior Dome were going insane as the battle down on Earth raged. Cosmo, to his credit, was spinning the twist in the battle for all he was worth. The surprise return of Blammo, Skyfire now teaming with the Rangers, it was the kind of story that came at them from nowhere.

"Look at that folks, Blammo with another devastating attack!" He bellowed with a rehearsed excitement in his tone, but underneath his top hat, he was sweating profusely, and not just because of the studio lights. Skyfire learning the truth about the Rangers, learning of the ruse Badonna had pulled was incredibly bad news for them. Skyfire, was powerful, insane, gullible, deadly…but now he had learned the truth, surely it was inevitable that he would come for them afterwards. It didn't matter that he had no more authority or right to consider himself an officer of the law than any other citizen, even Cosmo himself, but that had not mattered to him in a long time. Now, they were staring down the barrel of a lunatic with a history of destroying despots and psychopaths the length and breadth of the Galaxy who now believed them to be guilty of "filing false reports" or "wasting police time" perhaps even "conspiracy to pervert the course of justice". It didn't really matter how Skyfire justified it, if he wasn't destroyed now, he would doubtless come after them.

Badonna too seemed nervous about this turn of events; she hurriedly waved the kudabots over with the gigantification machine.

"In uh…a special event, we're going to…uh… REALLY spice things up!" She said, her voice cracking a little as she tried, and failed, to maintain the pretence that this was all a planned part of the show. She started slamming her hand down on the Skullgator command. By the time Cosmo managed to get her attention she had summoned four of the beasts! He just gaped at her open-mouthed. "Do you want him coming back up here?"

"BATTLE ROYAL!" He declared to huge roars of approval from the crowd, before breathing a sigh of relief. He saw Badonna scurrying off stage. "And where are you going?"

"I'm going to Brax's quarters!" She declared. "If that lunatic comes back, I want someone between me and him!"

Cosmo just gulped and turned back to the monitors. She had a pretty good plan, but it did leave one unsettling detail. Who was between Skyfire and him?

Down on Earth, the Rangers and Skyfire were battling with Blammo when the Skullgators started materialising. Skyfire just looked around in confusion.

"What? What is this?" He demanded.

"A little present courtesy of your 'solid citizens' Badonna and Cosmo!" Calvin told him. "Wow, she's just decided to send down a regular old party hasn't she?"

"What's the play Brody?" Levi asked. "We can't let them tap-dance all over Downtown, but this guy…"

"Leave Blammo to me!" Skyfire declared.

"What?" Brody asked. "Are you sure?"

"He was in custody on my ship; the fact he escaped and is causing trouble here is my responsibility." Skyfire told him. "It's up to me."

"We kind of need some firepower here." Hayley conceded. Brody thought about it for a moment.

"Alright, Levi, take the Bullrider Megazord. Preston, you take the Ninja Steel Megazord. Sarah, Calvin, Hayley, take the Blaze Megazord. I'll take the Lion Fire Megazord."

He looked to Sandy, and signalled to her.

"Help him." He instructed her. She just nodded in response. As the rest of the team rushed off to deal with the Skullgators, Skyfire and Sandy started to circle their opponent.

"You got lucky to get the drop on me last time Skyfire!" He declared. "You won't get that lucky again!"

"We'll just see about that! Sheriff Skyfire, JUSTICE STRIKE!" He answered, rushing towards him. Blammo fired out blasts straight into Skyfire, but he kept coming straight through them, head down, rushing right through the attacks. He sliced into him with his katana, only stopping when Blammo set off one of his devices in a desperate move to get some distance. It seemed to stun both of them. Sandy looked to Skyfire, who was still on the ground, struggling to get up. She considered if she should help him first, with Skyfire being the more powerful, but when she saw Blammo was preparing another device, she made her move running straight for him. She leapt into the air, bringing her sword down, but he saw her in time to deflect it and grabbed onto her.

"Ha, what are you? The team mascot?" He scoffed at her. "I don't know how you got to be a Ranger here, but in MY dimension you'd barely be considered a…"

He paused as something started to happen. Sandy's suit started to spark, but it wasn't from any attack. It was sparking and starting to build up Green energy, lightning arcing around her suit.

"What…what are you doing?" He demanded. Sandy shook her head wildly.

"I…I'm not doing anything!" She screamed at him. Before long, the energy built up and arced straight into Blammo, sending him flying. Sandy looked down at her suit, which was still sparking and flaring with green lighting. Her hands were positively glowing with the power of a major storm. She couldn't help staring at them until she saw Blammo getting up.

"I have no idea what this is or how it works," she said as she gripped to her sword and took a deep breath, "but right now, I'm ready to try just about anything!"

She concentrated hard on the sword, which started to glow and crackle with the power. She ran for Blammo, spinning towards him, bringing the sword through him again and again. He started staggering, struggling to remain upright as her power surged through him. By the time she was done, she felt drained, tired, so exhausted her knees buckled under her and she had to put her hands down to prevent her hitting the concrete face first, but as she looked up, she saw Blammo disappearing in a massive explosion, leaving hardly anything behind. She just smiled wearily.

"I have no idea what this is…" She panted, looking to her hands, "…but damn is it cool!"

Up on the Warrior Dome, Cosmo was watching the battle falling apart in a panic. He had seen Blammo fall, and more importantly, he could see that Skyfire was still alive and kicking. It all spelled real trouble for him.

He ran to the Gigantify machine, and without even waiting for the audience to respond, not that he was sure he needed to wait for their response given how loud they were, he slammed his hand on the button. The machine flickered and then let out an error siren.

"What?" He yelled.

"Subject unable to be resurrected." The machine stated. Cosmo slammed his hand down again and again, but it just continued to blare its warning.

"What's going on?" He screamed. "Gigantify him!"

Unfortunately the machine simply refused to respond. Cosmo kicked it in frustration, just as the last of the Skullgators exploded in a massive fireball. The crowd were still cheering as the battle ended with the Megazords all standing triumphantly over the city.

Down on Earth, the team had dismounted from the Megazords and ran to meet up with Skyfire and Sandy. Skyfire was kneeling over her, his hand on her back for support as she sat with her head over her knees, trying to regain her bearings.

"Sandy, are you alright?" Preston rushed out, signing to her frantically as he came to her and put his arms around her. Skyfire just looked to them.

"The Green Ranger should be just fine." He assured them. "She's a little drained, but if it wasn't for her, I'm not sure I'd have been able to bring down Blammo after the battle we had."

"Sandy brought him down?" Hayley asked. Preston looked to her.

"How did you defeat the monster?" Preston asked, signing a little awkwardly. He was learning, but he'd only really been studying a few weeks, and it wasn't like words like 'monster' came up in casual conversation so there weren't too many guides that taught them. She just looked to them.

"The lightning…it came back." She informed them. "I don't know why but I managed to control it…well, a little anyway."

"Why would it flare up again now?" Brody asked.

"I'm just glad it did. We can figure it out later." Preston told them. "In the meantime, there's no way I'm letting you go home like this."

"I…guess we're leaving the debrief until tomorrow then." Levi commented as Preston helped Sandy to her feet and started to walk her home.

"I suppose I could use some time too." Hayley answered. I have some things to think about."

"Alright then, I guess we're meeting in the Command Centre tomorrow morning." Brody responded. "How about you, Sheriff Skyfire, you want to join us?"

"Join you?" He asked.

"Yeah, you're amazing!" Calvin told him. "I bet with you on our side we could take down Badonna and her goons in no time!"

"It's a tempting offer, but I think it's time I faced up to the responsibility of my actions." Skyfire told him. "That human gave me a lot to think about. In my pursuit of criminals I've caused a lot of harm, I can't just walk away from that. That's why I've decided, I'm going to turn myself in to SPD."

"Are you sure you really want to do that?" Levi asked. "I mean, I understand wanting to repay your debt but surely going back with some more good deeds, like shutting down Galaxy Warriors under your belt might buy you some leniency?"

"It's a tempting offer. After the way they duped me, believe me when I say taking apart their ship would feel really good." Skyfire admitted. "But something I forgot along the way is even I have to abide by the rules. I have no evidence they are committing any crimes other than the lies they told me. I'll submit a report once I get back to SPD. It's really up to them to decide what should happen to me."

"It's a shame, because we'd really have loved to have you fight with us." Sarah told him. He just nodded.

"I'd have been honoured to fight with you too." He told them. "Well, if you'll excuse me, I just have one thing to do first."

"What's that?" Calvin asked. Skyfire just looked around the Rangers.

"I'm just going to pay a little visit before I'm on my way." He told them. "Space Jump!"

"You know, if they hadn't sicced that psycho on us, I'd be feeling a little sorry for them right about now." Calvin commented.

"I don't know, I think it might do them a little good to get a lesson in telling the truth to the authorities." Sarah chuckled. "It is a shame though; it would have been good to have him around when we face Drakkon."

"Yeah, but he has to do what he has to do." Levi sighed. "Sometimes the bravest thing anyone can do is face up to the responsibility of their actions."

"Yeah, I guess." Hayley answered. "Come on guys, let's go home."

Skyfire appeared on the Warrior Dome as Cosmo was trying to wrap up the show and have the audience hurried from the studio before he could get there. Security struggled with the audience; leading to a struggle near the doors as they realised Skyfire was now on the ship. Cosmo shrieked as he saw the deranged former lawman appear before him.

"Cosmo!" He boomed as he pointed an accusatory finger right at him. "I want a word with you and your accomplice Badonna!"

"I…I…I have no idea what you…"

"Don't lie to me! I know you tricked me into pursuing innocent citizens!" Skyfire told him.

"Well, I didn't really…"

"I know that the Nexus Prism was never yours." He interrupted him. "I know that the Rangers are the rightful owners. You and Badonna have caused a lot of trouble with your lies."

"What are you going to do to me?" Cosmo whimpered. Skyfire just sighed.

"Unfortunately, right now, there's not a lot I can do." He said regretfully. "As you no doubt well know I'm not a sworn member of law enforcement so lying to me doesn't constitute a crime."

"It…it doesn't?" Cosmo asked him.

"No." Skyfire replied. "And while I would love to haul you in and let SPD have you, you're currently outside their jurisdiction."

"Jurisdiction?" He asked. "Since when did you start caring about the rules?"

"I have acted in an unlawful manner in the past. I'm trying to be better now." Skyfire informed him. "Which is why, although I strongly suspect you broke into my ship I can't prove it, and despite all the crimes I have witnessed from here, I have no authority to detain you."

Cosmo got a satisfied smile on his face and started to straighten out his coat.

"Well, then I suppose our conversation is over." Cosmo replied. "I've been doing this show a long time, and I've had law enforcement nose around me many times. Trust me; I have the kind of legal team that means no one can touch me."

He lit up a cigar, taking a deep draw, before blowing the smoke in Skyfire's face.

"And now, if you don't get off the ship, then I'll report YOU for trespassing!" Cosmo said arrogantly, prodding him in the chest with his finger. Skyfire grabbed his hand, twisting his wrist painfully.

"I may not be a law man, but I am a sentient being and as such I have the right to defend myself with reasonable force if assaulted." Skyfire told him, forcing him to his knees. "Trust me, I'm going to report everything I've seen here, and I am VERY thorough in my reports. By the time I'm done, every true law enforcement agency in the sector will be going over your activities with a microscope!"

He shoved Cosmo to the floor, before activating a space-jump, leaving the ship just as security came to remove him. Cosmo could only lie on the floor, nursing his wrist. He was worried about Skyfire when he believed he was just going to lash out, but now…now he was wondering who would take him seriously. He greased a lot of palms in law enforcement to look the other way, but that was no guarantee Skyfire's words wouldn't reach the honest ones.

Now, he could only hope that Drakkon's plans were going to come to fruition before he had to worry about whether or not the authorities would finally lose patience with his entertainment network.

The following morning at school, the kids were starting to arrive and get ready for the day ahead. Sarah was just getting what she needed out of her locker when she became aware of Victor arriving to do the same. She tried to ignore him, to just concentrate on something, anything else and keep her focus in the locker, but one thing did catch her attention.

"Victor, where's your uniform?" She blurted out, before she could stop herself. She internally groaned and screwed her eyes shut. Why did she have to say anything?"

"Hi Sarah." He sighed. "I'm giving it back. I don't think I'm cut out for it."

She wished she could just leave it at that, but something in his tone spoke to her, deep inside, to a level she couldn't just ignore.

'No, don't…' Her brain started to say.

"Not suited for what?" Sarah asked.

"You know, security, helping people, any of that stuff." He muttered. "I went into this hoping to do something good, something right, like you guys do and instead all I seem to do is mess it all up. Cop? Some chance, I almost got expelled just trying to enforce the lunch line."

'Leave it alone Sarah.' Her brain warned her. 'You don't need to get involved in...'

"Victor, you've only been at this a couple of days." She reminded him. "I'm pretty sure Elliot Ness or J Edgar Hoover fouled up a few times before they got to where they did."

"I don't know, it's just…It's something Clint said." He told her. "He said that people who abuse the rules or don't use them properly only make it harder for people to trust those that are trying to help."

She saw his hand straying to his shirt, clutching something beneath it. She remembered what was there. His father's dog tags. She knew that Victor idolised his father and wanted to live up to his heroism. He wore them as a reminder to himself to always strive to be the best he could be to live up to his legacy. The law enforcement ambition was new, but it was that determination that was the driving force behind the trophy-obsessed super-athlete and competitor. He turned and looked to her.

"I wanted to be a good guy, to be the kind of person that you…you guys could learn to respect." He told her. "Instead, I don't know if maybe I'd just make things worse."

"No one who's genuine in their wish to do right and make the world a better place is making things worse." She told him, putting her hand on his shoulder.

'Uh…what the hell are you doing?' Her brain asked her.

"I don't know if this is the thing for you or not, but…maybe it might be worth seeing if you can learn? And if it doesn't work out, then maybe there's other ways you can help make things better." She told him. "Besides…the uniform does look kind of good on you."

'AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!' Her brain screamed internally.

"Thanks…I have to admit it does make me feel kind of…powerful." He admitted. "I mean, it's not YOUR uniform but…maybe if you…uh…you guys can do what you do, maybe I can learn this."

"That's the spirit!" She replied, hugging Victor. He gently hugged her back. It took a moment for her to realise what she was doing and release him.

"Uh…well…I have a meeting with Clint in the Principal's office." He told her.

"Yeah, I um…have to go too." She replied. "So…see you around?"

"Sure." He answered as she left. Monty arrived a moment later.

"Victor it's almost time for our meeting." He reminded him. "Victor?"

"Go ahead Monty; I have something I need to do." Victor told him. "I'll meet you there."

"What?" He asked.

"Cold shower." He whispered under his breath as he headed for the gym. "You idiot Victor, when will you learn?"

In Principal Hastings' office, Clint and Trevor were waiting when Hayley arrived.

"You wanted to see me?" Hayley asked.

"Clint was the one that called the meeting actually." Principal Hastings informed her. "He wanted to speak on your behalf."

"My behalf?" She asked, looking to Clint. "But…you were the one that cited me in the first place!"

"Well, yes, but a few recent events have made me think about a few things." Clint told her. "Your step-father was talking to me about the kind of girl you are, all the stuff you do to help your neighbours and help your parents and how you rescued Kody and I just figured that maybe someone like you, someone with a good heart, can make some mistakes without realising it and all you learned your lesson."

"Oh, I learned my lesson alright." She said, breathing a sigh of relief. "In fact, my friend Sarah came up with a device to put on the bins that'll sound a warning when someone puts something in the wrong bin. Kind of a reminder so people realise what they did and don't just leave it to you to clean up after them."

"Well, that sounds great." Clint replied. "The rules are there for a reason after all."

"Yeah, most of them are." Hayley muttered. Clint furrowed his brows.

"What's that meant to mean?" He asked. Hayley just froze, she was about to get a literal get out of jail free card and it sounded like she might have just blown it with her own big mouth.

"It's just…I still really don't see the problem with Kody." She told him. "I mean, he never does his business in the school, he doesn't cause any damage, he doesn't hurt anyone…everyone loves him."

"Well…maybe not everyone." Clint told her. She and Trevor just looked to each other, then back to him.

"Who could have a problem with Kody?" She asked.

"Yeah, that dog's so friendly; everyone in the neighbourhood loves him!" Trevor laughed. "I have more people ask me about him than my wife!"

"That's just the thing; it's not only you that's here." Clint told her. "Did you know there are fifteen kids at this school that have dog-hair allergies?"

"There are?" Hayley asked. "I…I didn't know that."

"There are also three kids who are phobic of dogs." Clint informed her. "I once had to give a kid a ride to the hospital because he had a full-blown panic attack when someone was walking their dog off the leash near the playing fields and it rushed him."

"Really?" She asked. It was something that had honestly never occurred to Hayley. She had been around Kody so long that she was used to him. She never really thought much about anyone that might have a genuine problem being around him.

"Look, I'm not saying Kody isn't a lovely dog, I know he is, I saw it myself." Clint told her. "But there are kids here that aren't so comfortable with it and we have to make this school somewhere they can feel safe too."

"I guess I never thought about it like that." Hayley answered. "I…I promise I'll not bring him into the school anymore."

"For what it's worth, this is a learning experience for me too." Clint conceded. "Maybe if I spent some time explaining the rules to people instead of just writing tickets people might just understand why they're there. Maybe I can learn to let more people just go with a warning."

Just then, Victor and Monty came in, carrying their uniforms. Clint smiled when he saw them.

"Gentlemen!" He announced. "Time to get changed into your uniform boys, it's time to begin the brand new training regimen that I've been discussing with Officer Marx here."

"New training?" Monty asked. Victor smiled brightly.

"When do we start?" He asked.

"No time like the present!" He declared. "Come on boys, there's time before class, so let's talk about the appropriate application of advisory warnings!"

With that, they all got up and headed out the door.


	17. Going Against Type

Coming towards the end of the week, the Warrior Dome had been flooded with a lot of angry messages. While a whole lot of fans were thrilled with the bloodshed, chaos and mayhem of the Skyfire episode, several more were furious about the end of the battle. Although Galaxy Warriors was a blood sport a significant number of the fans had a rather startling sense of fair play and respect for the rules. Although it was always fun to watch the chaos and carnage that occurred when things went off the rails a little, they did like a certain sense of control, and more importantly THEIR control over what they saw. The public vote for whether or not a monster gigantified or if Skullgators were unleashed gave the audience in the studio a feeling of being a part of the action. Towards the end of the Skyfire battle though, Badonna and Cosmo had panicked at the thought of him coming to the ship seeking vengeance that they completely took over the show. Now, now fans were furious.

Angry messages were being posted, letters were being sent, some more pro-active types were actually launching attacks against staff and talent of the show, citing the fact that they were being cut out of the show altogether. Cosmo's clothes were heavily stained with snacks and drinks as he sealed the doors behind him in Badonna's throne room.

"Those people are absolute savages!" Badonna protested. "Did you see what they're posting about me?"

"What they're…HELLO!" Cosmo yelled, gesturing to his clothes. He pulled off his hat to dust it off, only then noticing a throwing knife lodged in it. "Oh, that's just charming!"

"What are you going to do about this Cosmo?" She demanded.

"What am I…? YOU'RE the General Manager!" He reminded her. "All of this started when you took over!"

"I can't help it if my audience don't appreciate artistic…"

"You've been running my show into the ground!" Cosmo shrieked. "The only thing the audience hate more than a bad fight is a fighter that's being protected or a show they don't feel like they're in control of!"

"What are you saying?" She asked him.

"I'm saying that a lot of the ill-feelings towards my show started before Skyfire." He told her. "I started seeing an uptick in angry comments and bad reviews when you saved Brax!"

"My Braxy!" She squealed. "But…but…he's not ready to go back out! He's not…"

"I need something to turn this around and I want Brax!" He yelled at her. Badonna just started stammering. Cosmo looked to her monitors, finding a few that were linked to his training room. He had no doubt she spent a lot of time watching him.

"He looks healthy to me." Cosmo told her. "Tell your little boy toy he's got a contract to fulfil…"

"What if I had another warrior?" She rushed out. Cosmo just sighed.

"I want Brax!" He told her.

"Well…what about if I put in another warrior, and then Brax jumps in as a guest star?" She asked him. Cosmo considered this for a moment. "I mean, we both know Brax is strong enough to defeat the Rangers but with all those weapons, they just keep coming up with something else to throw at him. Why, I wouldn't be surprised if they've already been working on some new Zord or mode or something for one of them as we speak."

"So, what are you suggesting?" He asked her. She just smiled and pressed a button on an intercom.

"Bring Typeface in here." She stated. "Tell him I've got an offer for him."

Down on Earth, the team were getting ready for the end of the week as well. After the events with Skyfire, they were intending to use whatever small moments of peace they could get to ensure they were ready for anything. Brody was busy packing a bag for his weekend at the farm while Sarah worked on the computers. Although they'd made a lot of progress, he didn't feel quite ready to move back in with his dad full time. Levi had a lot of school work to do and so he was staying at his apartment, but he had agreed to join them for dinner. Brody and Emma in the meantime were due to go back for the weekend.

"You looking forward to the weekend?" Hayley asked him.

"Yeah, dad and I have a really great lesson plan worked out for Emma." He told them. "She's also going to spend some time building his computer but I'm meeting up with Burt."

"Burt?" Calvin asked. "Wasn't he the guy that was following you around?"

"Yeah, but there's a fun mudder in the area that he's signed up to." Brody told them. "It's a great cause and sounds like a lot of fun so I figured I'd to it too."

"How about you Sarah?" Hayley asked. "You going to be working on this?"

"No, I think I'm just about done here." She replied.

"What are you even doing there?" Sandy asked her.

"I'm just linking up all our weapons to the mainframe." She informed them. "It should mean Mick can keep better track of how they're all doing in battle."

"Why didn't you ask Emma to help?" She asked. Sarah just shrugged.

"She was helping the school with their system." She responded. "Besides, she's not the only one that knows how to work a computer. I think I've got this just about figured out."

"Speaking of Emma, I should really be going to meet up with her." Brody replied, tightening up the draw string of his bag and throwing it over the shoulder. "I'll catch you guys Monday."

"Catch you Monday!" Preston called after him. "So, Sandy and I were thinking of checking out the arcade. You two want to join us? Make it a double date?"

"Thanks, but…I think I'm going to be spending the weekend studying." Calvin sighed. "My English essay came back and…yikes."

"The one on The Great Gatsby?" Preston asked. "How bad was it?"

"Let's just say the grade looks more like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Calvin sighed.

"It's not that bad." Hayley told him. "I mean…it's a C."

"And colleges want B or higher." Calvin grumbled. "Sorry Presto, I don't think I'm going to be much fun this weekend."

"Cal, wait!" Hayley protested as she followed him out. Brody went with her. Just then, Sarah let out an excited little yelp.

"Well, there we go!" She said excitedly. "Your sister's not the only one that can code after all!"

She looked around and noticed that Preston and Sandy were gone.

"How…how long have I been the only one here?" She asked.

"We'll try not to be offended by that." Mick replied as she just shrugged.

"OK, now, let's run a full diagnostic on all the weapons!" She told him in an excited little squeal as she did a little victory dance at her desk. "Now, thanks to this system I can do all of that at once!"

"So, now you just need to wait on that?" He asked. She just nodded. "Great, then you can help me figure out these readouts I took of the energies from Sandy's Power Star. That lightning thing she did flared up again so we've doubled our sample size for data. Maybe now we can finally figure out what's going on and how she can harness it.

As Brody got to the desk, kids were just starting to file out of the school. Emma had agreed to help Principal Hastings to update the administration system, or…more accurately to create it. The fact was the school still kept the majority of its files in analogue form, which was to say paper files. Since the monster attacks began, many of the staff had left the city altogether meaning that those that stayed often covered multiple duties. Clint's security team also covered social media moderation and sorting the recycling. Most of the teachers took two, or perhaps even three subjects. Even Principal Hastings often had to step in and take over classes to fill in gaps in the rota as sometimes the same teacher would have to literally be in two classrooms at the same time meaning they had to alternate which days they were in which class. To say that meant some of the other duties sometimes got neglected was being charitable about the situation.

Brody was due to meet with her before they headed out to the farm for the weekend. The timing wasn't ideal, being so close to exam times, but she had managed to get her foster family to agree to let her go and meet up with her biological father for a little bit of time each week, and once she graduated, they would have all summer where Dane could get together with Emma's other family.

Brody saw her behind the desk with the receptionist and Principal Hastings, explaining what she had done on the new system. The desk was covered in large, bulky file folders and the filing cabinets behind them were all open, showing much more paperwork. It had indeed been some time since they had someone that could update the filing in the computer.

"I just need to complete this transfer and then I just need to route the program to launch from your desktop." She explained as they watched on. Emma knew a lot about computers. That was to say that she did sometimes have a habit of just taking things right down to the code. The computer she was setting up for her dad she was literally building from scratch! All of the school staff had training in computing, it was a prerequisite for the job and had been for decades now, but Emma's approach was a little more than they were expecting and both of them looked a lot more like she was explaining how to pilot a rocket ship than how she was setting up a program. Brody couldn't help smiling. They didn't really need to know how the code worked any more than Emma needed to know how a bokken was forged in order to use one. Still, her enthusiasm was one of the things he loved about his little sister.

"Hey, Emma you nearly ready to go?" Brody asked her.

"Yeah, just one sec." She told him, before going back to the computer. "And…there we go!"

The new program popped right up on the screen. It was a relatively simple layout as far as Brody could see. It had clearly marked buttons for the files, to the point he was pretty sure even he'd be able to navigate it. Going back to his bokken analogy it wasn't as if someone needed particularly many lessons to realise which end of it, they were meant to hold and which end they weren't. The whole explanation of the coding was likely really surplus to what they needed to know and possibly only confused the matter.

"Let me get this straight." The receptionist asked, looking to the computer. "You're telling me that everything that's in all these files is now in here?"

"Yup!" Emma said proudly. "All available with just a click!"

"Well, I will remember this when I'm deciding the winner of the school's technology trophy." Principal Hastings said, dumping some folders in the recycling bin. Emma just started sucking her teeth. "What? What did I do?"

"First rule of technology…always keep a backup." Emma told her. "It's not common but things can go wrong. Usually I'd suggest backing up everything you have."

She pulled out a canvas roll and rolled it out on the desk. It contained dozens of flash drives. Even Brody's eyes bulged when he saw how much she carried around with her.

"I back up everything on at least two different sources." She told them, rolling it back up and stuffing it into her bag. "But…analogue is a good way to go too if you have the space. You can't delete paper."

"I'll try to remember that." Principal Hastings replied, starting to sheepishly fetch some folders out of the recycling bin. She looked to the receptionist. "Um…would you mind taking some petty cash and going to get a couple of those flash drive things?"

"Alright, we're done here." Brody declared. "Come on, let's get going."

Back in the Ranger Lab, Sarah, Mick and Redbot were continuing to work on the data they had gotten from Sandy's Power Star. They didn't have as much as they'd like to work with, so far, they had only found it to have flared up twice and even trying to come up with a connection between those incidents was a little tricky.

"Wait…both times Sandy was under attack. Maybe it's connected to adrenaline?" Mick suggested. Sarah looked unconvinced.

"We've got adrenaline running pretty much any time we're attacked." Sarah reminded him. "If it was that simple, she'd probably be walking around like a human lightning rod."

"Good point." Mick stated.

"Wait, both Lord Draven and Blammo were about the same size, weren't they?" Redbot asked. Maybe it's something to do with that? Like an equalizer when she's facing someone bigger than her."

"You have met Sandy, right? The only person on this team shorter than her is me." Sarah reminded them. "Pretty much everyone she runs into is bigger than her, even the kudabots!"

"That is…unfortunately a really good point." Mick answered. Just then, a computer gave him a warning. He went over to it, checking the readout and sighed.

"What is it?" Sarah asked.

"I found a piece left over from one of Blammo's bombs." He informed her. "I was just analysing it to see if we got any answers but…not so much."

"What does it say?" She asked him.

"Read it for yourself." He told her, handing her the readout.

"Carbon, Iron, Sulphur…Unknown, Unknown, Unknown…." She read down the list of components in the fragment. "Most of this is stuff not on our periodic table."

"Just like her Power Star." Mick agreed. "But that doesn't necessarily tell us where it's from, just where it's not."

"Maybe…maybe not." Sarah said, going and checking something else. She pulled something up. "Mick, you want to have a look at this?"

"What am I looking at?" He asked her.

"Its an analysis of one of Lord Draven's weapons." She told him. "Look, most of its makeup is unknown."

"Well, we'd expect that wouldn't we?" He asked her. "He was from a different dimension."

"So, what if…what if Blammo was too?" She asked him. He started to pace the room, stroking his chin.

"I guess it's possible." He told her. "The records of his crimes here only go back a few years, maybe he was somewhere else before then."

"Mick, we know Psycho Green was here from at least 1969 but…where was he before that?" She asked him. Mick just frowned at her.

"How old do you think I am?" He snapped, sounding offended. She started to wander the lab.

"OK, this is really, really thin, but…what if Blammo was from a different dimension?" She asked. "Then both times Sandy's powers flared up…"

"Would have been against extra-dimensional beings." Mick concluded. He then just shook his head. "That's…definitely thin. I mean we don't know for a fact Blammo is from another dimension, and even if we did, two occurrences aren't a pattern, it's a coincidence."

"I…guess." Sarah sighed. "So, this theory's on the back burner?"

"Let's just say it's a little better than mine about Draven and Blammo being the same height." Redbot replied with a shrug. "Anyway, it's getting late, you should probably be going."

"Oh, shoot, you're right." Sarah rushed out, gathering her belongings. "Mom and dad will freak if I'm home late. I'll see you guys later OK?"

Over on the Romero Farm, Dane and Brody were taking Emma though some lessons. They were planning to start work on the computer early the following morning, but in the meantime, Emma was keen to get back to her practice.

Practice was definitely slower going for her than it was for some of their other students, but she was always eager to learn and always put in the work. It was starting to show as well. There were still stumbles and the odd stance that had to be corrected, but her form was most definitely improving. Brody was performing a bokken kata side-by-side with her while Dane watched them, keeping his eye on their form. He didn't really need to watch Brody all that much, but having an extra pair of eyes on the outside able to spot any flaws to correct was definitely of benefit.

"Spin and…hya!" She called out. Dane just smiled as he came over.

"Alright, take a step back, let's try this again." He told her. "See, you're thinking of the bokken and its movement separate from your own. So, when you did that last move it looked something like this."

It was surprisingly a struggle for Dane to do a move badly, by now most of his moves were instinctual so he had to really concentrate to replicate what Emma had done. He spun around, adopting his stance, but kept his bokken more or less in the same place. He then raised up his bokken and brought it down in a straight swipe. "Now, what I want you to do, if you follow me, nice and slowly is more like this. You see, as you spin, raise the bokken up, bring it around with you, turn the head quickly to track your target, then by the time you've turned and are in position, the bokken is already in place and…"

He swiped the bokken down, this time in more of a curving arc.

"The benefit as well is when you do it the way you did before, you only have the distance from above your head to the end point to generate power." He explained as he re-set and started to do the move again, very slowly so she could see. "But do it this way, your bokken starts its journey here, and it has all the way around here, up and by the time you're back ready to strike, it's travelled almost double the distance. That's where the power is, you see?"

"I think so." Emma replied. "Let me try this again."

She re-set her position and started the move. Dane and Brody pulled back just enough to let the bokken swipe through the air. As it came down, Emma completed the move. Dane just tapped her bokken with his own.

"Just…move it a little there. You want power, but you don't want to bring your bokken completely out of the way of your body, that just leaves you exposed. It's called a guard for a reason." He told her. "And strong stance. OK Brody, you want to show her the last move?"

Brody took up his stance.

"Alright, and the last one is a little more straightforward." He explained. "Now, raise the bokken above your head and swing with power!"

Emma did as close to what she was told as possible, but she still had the thought of the last move in her mind. Instead of bringing the bokken straight up, she swung it out to the side first, forcing Brody to duck to avoid a concussion.

"I did it!" She screamed. "I'm getting really good at this!"

"Yeah, well…you know what they say, practice makes perfect." Dane told her. "Now, how about you come inside? Dinner should almost be ready. We can train more tomorrow after we put some of this computer together."

As they were starting to head inside, Brody's phone started to ring. He tried to answer it, but just growled as it clicked off.

"Damn this stupid phone!" He grumbled.

"What's up with it?" Emma asked him.

"That was Burt, he probably wanted to check when we were meeting tomorrow." Brody told her. "But this stupid phone…ever since I downloaded an app, it's been really glitchy."

"Where did you get the app from?" She asked him.

"Some website?" He asked sheepishly. She just looked to him judgementally.

"It sounds like it's probably been a virus." She told him, beginning to work on the phone. "With luck it'll just be a griefer and it won't be a worm or a back door or anything."

"Uh…yeah…that would be…bad?" Brody said unconvincingly. Emma just sighed.

"Some people just create viruses to cause trouble, as a prank. Basically, just to be jerks." She explained.

"Griefers?" Brody asked. She just nodded.

"Some people though really want what's on your system. The initial virus is just there to distract while they install a way to get to your personal data. I really hope you haven't been using your credit card or anything on this."

"That would require I have a credit card." Brody said with a little smile. Just then, a monster appeared before them. It was a weird looking thing, even by Badonna's standards. It looked like it was made up of keyboards and assorted computer parts. He kicked Brody back and started cackling.

"Surprise!" He cackled. "Prepare to be deleted!"

"Uh…Brody?" Emma asked nervously as she clutched her bokken in a defensive manner, starting to back away. "Are you alright?"

"Never better!" Brody called out as he rushed past her, morphing on the way and slashing into him. The monster flew backwards, landing in a heap a fair distance away.

Without a word, the monster teleported away as Brody brought his sword down where he had been laying. Brody just looked around in confusion as Dane ran out of the house, carrying his own ninjato.

"What happened? Is everything alright?"

"I…guess so?" Brody replied as he de-morphed. "A monster appeared, then just…disappeared. I barely touched it at all."

"I didn't even see any Buzz-Cams." Emma added.

"Why would Cosmo send a monster with no cameras to record the action?" Dane asked him.

"Beats me." Brody replied. "But we should probably call this in, let the others know to keep their guard up. Remember what happened with Brax."

With that, they headed back into the house.


	18. Awkward Conversations

In the Marx house, Hayley was looking over Calvin's latest English essay. The Yellow Ranger had always struggled a little with school work. He wasn't dumb by any chalk of the imagination, even before his contact with Ninja Steel gave him a natural affinity for engineering principals that should be years beyond his capabilities, he had always been gifted with such matters. His mom had virtually raised him to school age in the small, cottage industry shop she ran from her garage to help out neighbours. It wasn't really a job per se, Calvin's dad earned more than enough that his mom really ran it more on a basis of favours, usually taking payment in the form of whatever neighbours could afford or payment in kind such as home cooked meals etc. but she'd always loved being a mechanic and it was something she passed onto him.

He was never a poor student in other areas, but he just seemed to have a very focused interest and mind-set that lent itself well to mechanical engineering. He had done alright in other subjects, certainly enough to get him through most of his grades, but as time went by and the exams and expectations went up, especially as it came towards time for him to start considering what he wanted to do with his life after school, applying for jobs or for college, he was becoming more and more keenly aware of how average his CV was looking. It had never really bothered him before but like everyone else, he knew that pretty soon, like it or not, he would have to go into someone's office and try to convince him why he deserved a job or a place more than everyone else that was applying for the same position.

"Well?" He asked her. "Is it really that bad?"

"Well…" Hayley said, trying how best to put it diplomatically. She had a lot of her own issues going on right now. Her dad was coming to collect her to take her to his place, but he had to collect Maxie from the physiotherapist first. Her appointment was late in the day, and so they had told Hayley that they'd pick her up afterwards and get something on the way. Her mom and dad had always been really amicable after the divorce. It was pretty clear to everyone involved long before the event that things just weren't working and they would be much happier apart, and so the whole routine of splitting Hayley's time between them had been almost better than the months and years leading up to the divorce. Unfortunately, with Trevor coming home, there really wasn't any way past the fact there was a slightly uneasy feeling there. Hayley had managed to get Trevor to ease up and stop trying to push the issue, but it did weigh a little on her to suddenly feel a little like a cross between the rope in a tug of war, and a referee in a game of racket ball. She was afraid the situation might spark up, but she had no idea what to do if it did anyway.

As for Calvin, she loved him and wanted what was best for him, but she, more than any of the others, noticed how much the issue of grades and results was starting to get to him. She knew that people didn't mean to be thoughtless when they were talking about the options and acceptances they were getting. It was only natural that kids were getting nervous about waiting for offers or excited about opportunities that were coming up but that just made it all the more frustrating to those who weren't getting the same offers. She didn't doubt that Calvin would end up landing on his feet. For all his forgetfulness and his laid back ways he was a pretty practical and streetwise kind of guy that would find a way to get by in the end. That didn't mean to say he didn't doubt it himself at times.

She could see the way he was looking at her as he waited for an answer, once that just wouldn't come to her. He eventually just threw his hands up.

"I knew it, I did stuff it up didn't I?" He asked her.

"Well, I wouldn't say that exactly, I mean you do make some good points about the source material…"

"But?" He asked.

"Well…it's a little…lacking in depth." She told him. "Look, I'm not saying your essay didn't get its points right, a lot of The Great Gatsby is about wealth and…"

"I just…I don't get it." He sighed. She looked to him sympathetically.

"Look, the wealth aspect is just one part of it. It's also largely about how the characters involved were lacking. They were wealthy, but that in itself wasn't what made them bad, it's just what made the fact they were so bad so galling because for the most part they were never called on it and never had to face any consequences for what they did. I mean it's like…Tom confronts Gatsby about the fact that he earned his fortune from pharmacies that sold alcohol under the counter."

"Yeah?" Calvin asked.

"But Tom was either throwing or going to parties where people were getting blitzed out of their brains in the middle of the prohibition!" She pointed out. "He was a complete hypocrite because he was happy enough to fund these businesses and take advantage of the fact they were there but still looked down on people who worked in those businesses. He was cheating on his wife but went ballistic when he thought she was cheating on him. And do you think for one minute he didn't know that his wife was the one that was driving when she hit his mistress? But he was still only too happy to point the finger at Gatsby and then leave town with his wife in tow and pretend nothing had happened."

"Jeez, when you put it like that…see then it makes it seem simpler." Calvin told her. "But when I read the book, even when we watched the movie I just didn't get it that way."

"To be fair I think you were kind of more into seeing Tobey Maguire without the Spider-Man suit."

"He was pretty good in it." Calvin conceded. "I don't know, it's just…you seem to see all of that, other people do but I just don't. Hell, I had problems padding it to the word limit."

"Yeah, I kind of saw a bit of that." She said. She checked her watch. "Shoot, dad should be picking me up soon. You want to go over it more tomorrow?"

"Not really." He sighed. "But…I guess we can try and drive some more of this through my thick head."

"Cal, don't beat yourself up so much." She told him. "It's one grade."

"Yeah, on top of all the others." He muttered. "Look, just call me when you want to come over. I'll see you then."

With that, Hayley gave him a hug and saw him towards the door. She really hated how down he was about everything. She did worry that letting it get into his head if anything just made it harder for him to shake it off and reset to handle the next obstacle. As he left, she gave him a kiss on the cheek. He greeted her dad as he was coming up the path.

"Hayley, sorry we're late." He told her. "Maxie's session ran a little long."

"Oh, it's alright, I was just finishing up some notes with Cal." She told him. "I'll just get my bag and…"

"Aaron! It's great to see you!" Laura interrupted, rushing to the door. "How are you? Everything alright at the University?"

"Well, it's the usual, budget issues, tenure board politics…"

"That's nice, did I hear you say Maxie was here?" She rushed out.

"Uh…well, yes, she's in the car…"

"Oh, that's great! Why don't you bring her on in? We can have dinner before you take Hayley home?"

"Mom, I really don't think…"

"Don't be silly Hayley, it'll be much better than take out right?" She asked. Aaron just sighed.

"I suppose." He answered, looking between Hayley and her mother. "I'll just go tell Maxie and pull the car into the driveway."

"That's great! I'll just get everything ready!" She told him. "Trevor! Set three extra places, we're having company!"

As Aaron headed off to explain things to Maxie and Laura went to see to dinner, Hayley just slumped against the wall.

Over on the Romero Farm, Dane was watching as Emma worked on building up the computer. He wasn't hugely interested in computers, but he was astute enough to know he was living in the age where knowing some basics would be very helpful. He'd seen Brody using Google for his homework, and while it wasn't the most advanced of things, it did make it clear that the times were definitely changing. In his day, he could remember doing most of his study and homework at the library.

Even when he was at the Wind Ninja Academy much of his time was spent going over books and scrolls. However, he'd seen Brody use his phone to access effectively the world's largest library so many times he figured if nothing else it would make finding what he needed easier. He'd heard Emma talk about how people could shop and trade and even do their banking on their computers now.

He wasn't sure his life would ever get to the point where he wouldn't think going into town for his tools and materials for his odd-jobs was preferable but he did find it fascinating to hear what people could do online and a large part of ninjutsu was about being adaptable.

"Now this, this is just looking beautiful. A piece of art." Emma said excitedly as she put together one of the boards. Dane just blinked and nodded in polite agreement. To him it was just a green piece of board with some metal and plastic bits on it.

"So, how's school going?" He asked her. She just shrugged.

"Pretty good. I'm not too sure about what to do when I graduate though." She replied honestly. "I mean, my parents are cool and all, but I don't really think they're up for the whole idea of sending their sixteen year old to a college dorm."

"Yeah…I can imagine." He replied honestly. He was aware of her age, but every now and then had to remind himself that she was still so young. She was in the same year as Brody because she was so gifted she'd been advanced a couple of years in her studies. He had no idea where she got that from. "So, you thought about what you might want to do if they don't want you to leave home?"

"I don't know. Maybe a community college in the city I can commute to." She suggested. "Maybe a job or something, I don't know."

"Well, just don't forget to have some fun in among all that." Dane reminded her.

"I'll try not to." Emma told him. She paused for a moment. "Can…can I ask you something personal?"

"Sure." He replied. "That's what this time is all about."

"It's just…you and mom." She continued. "I know there was some…stuff went down, but…what was it between…I mean…did you…did you love her?"

Dane was almost floored. It was a question he knew was coming. Although Emma hadn't seemed to be resentful towards him, he knew that eventually the subject was going to come up. She wanted to know him and to know more about where she came from. Dane sat down with her on the floor and took a deep breath.

"That…that's a really big question." He admitted. "I really don't know how to answer, but…I guess I owe you honesty if nothing else."

She just looked to him as he tried to compose himself and gather his thoughts.

"Your mother, Mariko, was one of the most wonderful, generous and loving people I've ever met in my life." Dane told her. "I did love your mother. She was most definitely more than a friend to me. However, I'd be lying if I said I was IN love with her."

Emma put down the circuit board she was working on and looked at Dane as he struggled to compose his thoughts. He did want to have a relationship with Emma, but clearly he was struggling with what to tell her about it all.

"There's really nothing I can tell you that makes me look like a good guy in all this." He admitted. "Your mother gave me two of the most precious gifts anyone could ever have asked for. I really wish I could say I didn't know she wanted a lot more from me than I wanted from her. But the one thing I can say is, I am grateful to her, and I love her in a way. I always will."

Emma just nodded wordlessly. Dane could see that she had to be upset. Although she'd been young when she went to her foster family, Mariko had raised her until her passing. It was never going to be a good conversation to have with her.

"Are you…are we alright?" He asked her. She just nodded.

"Thank you for being so honest." She told him. "I…I'm sorry I brought it up…"

"Don't be." Dane told her. After a long silence, he picked up one of the boards.

"So, do we pack up for the night? Or do you show me where this goes?" He asked her. She took it from him.

"We need to finish building it if I'm ever going to teach you how to use it." She replied, before getting back to work.

Back in the Marx house, Maxie, Aaron and Hayley were all sitting at the table while Laura and Trevor prepared the meal. He brought through some drinks, putting them around the place settings.

"So, Hayley tells us you're working at the school now." Aaron said, trying to start up the conversation. Trevor just nodded.

"It's an adjustment alright." He told him. "Clint's enthusiastic, I'll give him that much. I guess I just got a new jurisdiction that's just a little bit smaller."

"Well, I'm glad to hear you're working." Aaron told him. "I remember being between jobs, it was the worst."

"Alright, everyone mind your backs." Laura said as she brought through a couple of plates. "Baked potato with macaroni cheese. Hope you're all hungry."

After everyone was served and seated around the table, they all started. It was quiet, really quiet.

"So, Maxie, how's the studies going?" Laura asked her.

"Really good, all things considered." She told her. "I've been getting great feedback from the board about my research. I've had to ask for some more time and suchlike, but…they're all really understanding."

"Oh, well…that's nice to hear." Laura said, glancing to Trevor to see his reaction. He did pause for a moment, but then continued to eat like nothing happened. "Hayley, have you heard back any good offers from colleges?"

"I've got some really promising sounding offers." She admitted. "Harwood County has a really interesting political science program, but there's a more comprehensive legal department in Coral Harbour. Not to mention their work on renewable energy is REALLY interesting! If I go, I'll probably consider a minor."

"I know just what you mean, I keep hearing of the stuff coming out of Coral Harbour all the time! Just think of it, clean energy!" Aaron said excitedly. "No more drills, no more platforms, no more leaky pipes all over the ocean floor. How amazing would that be?"

"I don't know, it just feels like we hear this kind of thing every couple of years." Trevor said. Aaron just looked at him.

"So, you don't think we should be looking at alternative energies?" He asked him.

"No, I absolutely do! I just…find it a little hard to get excited until I see the real progress, you know?" He responded. "I mean, you all remember a few years ago they were saying everyone would be driving hybrids by now but look at what happened to that. They're still too expensive for a lot of people to buy, you still have to look for charging points and there's still the issue of the power to charge them with."

"Well, no one's going to deny there's issues to overcome." Maxie responded. "I'm sure that people were saying the exact same thing when they were talking of replacing horses and stage coaches with cars but look around, you don't see many people riding horses now do you?"

"Because the investment was put in that ended up bringing down the costs and making cars a viable option for the masses." Trevor told her.

"Well, who's to say the same thing won't happen one day for gasoline?" She asked him.

"Exactly, who knows what's going to happen in the future?" Laura said. Maxie fumbled a little with her cutlery, at which Aaron leaned over to whisper something to her and take it from her, helping a little. "Is there a problem?"

"Oh, it's just…the skin, I love a crispy skin, but it's a little difficult to cut." Maxie replied.

"I'm sorry?" Laura asked.

"No, it's absolutely lovely, really it is! I'm loving it!" Maxie told her. "It's just…a little difficult for me right now."

"Its fine, I'm just helping…"

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Laura asked.

"Mom, with her arm…"

"Is that meant to be some kind of shot?" Laura demanded angrily. The mood at the table noticeably shifted. This was what Hayley was dreading. Trevor tried to interject.

"Laura, it's alright…"

"I didn't invite you into our home so you could attack my husband!" She yelled. Aaron and Hayley were stunned, and moving to try and ease things. Maxie looked stunned, but was never one to sit and not defend herself.

"Attack?" She asked.

"MOM!" Hayley demanded.

"Oh, please, sitting there like butter wouldn't melt…you've been making snide little digs since you got here!" Laura snapped. "Oh, I need extra time on exams. I need help cutting a potato…don't think I don't see what you're doing!"

"Laura, that's enough, this is obviously just a little misunderstanding." Aaron said, looking to Maxie. "I'm sure she doesn't believe…"

"What I'm doing? Do you think I like sitting here struggling?" Maxie asked her. "I've been in physiotherapy for months! Do you think its fun for me re-training myself how to write? How to use cutlery? Do you have any idea how humiliating it is struggling with things I learned to do when I was FIVE?"

"Laura…"

"You think you're the only one that's suffered? Trevor's been in an institution for months!" Laura yelled. "He was put on trial for crimes he didn't even commit just to prove he wasn't responsible!"

"MOM!" Hayley yelled at her, slamming her hands down on the table. Everyone suddenly fell silent. Laura started to realise the scene that had just erupted.

"I…I…"

"I think…maybe this was a mistake." Aaron suggested, wiping off his mouth with a napkin. "Perhaps…least said, soonest mended."

"That might be an idea." Trevor sighed, before gesturing to the food. "Would you like me to wrap some of this for you?"

"It's alright, we can get something on the way." Aaron told him, putting his arm around Maxie as they got up from the table. "The food was lovely by the way."

There was no response. Instead, everyone started quietly getting their things together. Laura went to Hayley as she gathered her bag.

"Hayley…"

"Mom, just…leave it for now." Hayley begged her, before following her dad and Maxie out of the house. She had no doubt that in the cold light of day when everyone started to think about it, they'd realise the whole situation had been built up from nothing. She understood her mom wanting to make everyone happier about Trevor being back, but she had pushed a little too hard. They just weren't ready for so much so soon. She just hoped that everyone could back off and cool down enough to let the dust settle. The last thing she wanted was to end up being the referee between both sides of her family.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Badonna came into Brax's training room. He was working on his technique, honing his skills for a return bout with the Rangers. He'd tried once and failed with his usual strategy of lulling the Rangers into a false sense of security by feigning weakness. The Pink Ranger's new weapon had been a wake-up call for him. He needed to improve. Any fool could pick up a powerful weapon, but a weapon's power didn't mean anything if they couldn't hit the target.

As he finished a routine, and Tynamon applauded, he saw Badonna entering the room, clapping enthusiastically.

"That was wonderful Braxy, surely a masterpiece!" She congratulated him. "It's like watching a symphony of carnage!"

"Thanks." He grunted.

"No outside distractions!" Tynamon protested. "The champ is on a very strict…"

"Oh, go bother someone else 'little' man." She said, brushing him away. "Tell me, how would you like to have another crack at those Rangers?"

"I look forward to avenging my humiliation!" He told her. "Once…once I am ready."

"Oh, but you are ready!" She assured him. "With moves like that, I'm sure the Rangers won't stand a chance!"

"I don't want to take any chances! I'll only attack when I am at my peak performance!" He told her. "I don't want to take the chance that they'll pull out some other new super weapon…"

"Oh, but that's just the thing." She said, moving in close. "What if I was to tell you there would be no weapons?"

"I'd say you're promising more than you can…"

"Will you shut up and go bother someone else?" She shrieked at Tynamon. "Think on your own shortcomings and don't impose them on your charge!"

She looked back to Brax.

"What if I was to tell you the Rangers won't have all their fancy toys?" She asked him. Brax was a powerful warrior, one that prided himself on his victories. But he had been humiliated once by the Rangers, and he was pragmatic above everything else. Few worried how someone won, all they remembered in the years after a battle was who won. He looked to Tynamon.

"Go and get my bath ready!" He demanded.

"WHAT?" He shrieked. "But champ…"

"I said go and prepare my bath!" He reiterated, before looking to Badonna and smiling. "So, what do you have in mind?"


	19. Tech War

Brody was astounded by Burt's pace as they ran the course. Burt, a kid he had met out in Millport, the son of the General Store owner, was an impressive athlete it had to be said. He'd told Brody that there was a charity Tough Mudder event in the area he was taking part in and had convinced Brody to take part too.

A Tough Mudder was similar to a fun run, but instead of just a straight run, the event took place across an assault course, which as the name implied, took place across muddy conditions. It was an incredible challenge, but one that had increased in popularity over the years. Brody wasn't often finding himself outmatched physically, every now and then finding someone that would give him a run for his money or be a match for him, but most of the way around the course, he was trailing behind Burt by a good twelve feet or more. He could easily defeat him if he allowed himself access to the power of his Power Star, but straight up, Burt was simply a much better athlete. Burt crossed the finish line first, turning and smiling as he waited for Brody, who was a little way behind. Just to tease him, he stared at his wrist as though staring at a watch.

"What took you so long?" He asked as Brody doubled over to catch his breath.

"Very funny!" Brody panted as Burt got them both bottles of water, tossing one to Brody. "You were tearing it up out there."

"Yeah, I may not be able to do much but this…this has always been my kind of thing." Burt said, gesturing to the course. "I've had people recommend I sign up to the forces, but I think that'd probably be the only thing worse than staying here."

"Yeah, all that getting up at dawn, working out all day…I can see how that's really different from your life now." Brody responded light-heartedly.

"Sure, but right now I choose when I do all of that." Burt replied, shoving him playfully. "Besides, as much as I bitch about this place…I know I'll probably end up back here. Almost everyone does. I think Brain…I think Riley was the only one that got out."

"So, you're not totally against staying here now?" Brody asked him. He just shrugged.

"I think I was just resentful about it not being my choice." He told him. "But you know, a couple of years at college, get some qualifications, maybe I can help dad with the business instead of spending the next twenty years stacking shelves and mopping the floors."

"Wouldn't you have to do that anyway?" He asked. Burt just shrugged.

"Yeah, but again, not by choice." He reminded him. "You know, I tease but you put in a pretty impressive pace around that course. You sure you've not done this before?"

"Not this, no." Brody answered. It was true he'd never done a designated assault course before, but between his childhood running from monsters that wanted him for lunch on the Warrior Dome and his ninjutsu training and his time as a Ranger, he'd certainly picked up more than a few transferrable skills. "Good to hear from a veteran that I did well for a first go."

"You did a lot better than I'd do with Martial Arts." Burt chuckled as he wiped himself down with a towel. "Those classes I've been taking to get my high school grades up are really paying off though. Did I tell you I got accepted to Summer Cove Community College?"

"Really? No way!" Brody called out, gesturing to himself. "Me too! I was going to take carpentry minoring in business management."

"I was planning on taking business management minoring in physical training." Burt responded. "Wow, so we'll probably be classmates!"

"For some of our classes yeah, it sounds like it!" Brody replied.

"So, you want to go again?" Burt asked him, gesturing to the course. "You know…maybe go for a shake afterwards?"

Just then, Brody's morpher bleeped. He just sighed.

"I'm really sorry, but something really important just came up." Brody told him.

"Sure, I'll catch you tomorrow maybe?" Burt asked.

"Sure, I guess so." Brody told him. "I'll call you!"

As he ran off, Burt watched him go, before heading back to his gear, beginning to pack up to go home.

The Rangers all arrived at a park, finding Typeface waiting for them. They all started to gather as he noticed their presence and turned towards them.

"Rangers! So good of you to finally get here!" Typeface cackled.

"Yeah, we do have lives outside of you guys." Calvin told him impatiently. "So, if we could skip all the usual blah, blah, blah and get to the punching so we can get back to it?"

The Rangers rushed towards him to attack. Typeface staggered as the team's first attacks struck home. Seeing the opportunity for a quick victory, Sandy tried to summon her sword. However, when she did, her morpher just flashed at her. She tried again, but it just continued to flash.

"Sandy, you want to get in on this?" Hayley asked.

"Guys, I think there's something wrong with my morpher." She told them. "I can't summon my sword."

"I'll look at it later." Sarah told her, before trying to call up her blaster. She found it just flashing an error message up. "Guys…there's something wrong with mine too!"

Just then, Brody arrived, running as fast as he could. He doubled up as he tried to catch his breath.

"Not…not this guy again." He panted. "Maybe this time he'll hang around.

"Glad you could finally join us." Preston said sarcastically.

"Hey, I'd have been here quicker but I couldn't call my Mega Morph Cycle!" He protested. The team suddenly started to look around each other.

"OK, once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, three or more times…" Hayley said, checking her own morpher. "Guys, I can't summon any of my gear! My sword, my blaster…any of it!"

"Having a few technical issues?" Typeface asked them. "Well, now that you're all here, let me introduce you to a good friend of mine."

Just then, there was a flash of light and Brax appeared. The team all started to back up, mashing away at the commands on their morphers.

"Uh…guys, I think we have a real problem here!" Preston stated.

"Ya think Preston?" Hayley asked sarcastically as Brax drew his sword and ran straight for them.

In Millport, the Romero Farm was a little quiet all things considered. Emma had built up the computer and turned it on to seen that everything was working as it should. Although building a computer from scratch did give her the ability to make something that was a lot better than what was available on the market, it did mean that a lot of things that would otherwise be taken for granted she had to do herself.

"Is the screen meant to be like that?" Dane asked, seeing only a blinking white cursor in a corner of the screen. Emma nodded.

"It's working." She assured him. "I've only built the hardware. I just need to start uploading all the software."

"Yeah…that." Dane said. Emma just sighed and turned to face him.

"You know how when you teach me Martial Arts, you get me to run laps, do push ups, sit ups all that kind of thing to get my fitness up?" She asked. Dane just nodded. "Think of that as hardware. You're just making sure that I physically have what I need to be able to do what you want me to be able to do. It doesn't tell me how to do a punch or a kick or a block, but it means I have what I need to be able to do it."

"OK, I follow so far." He replies. "So, the software is…?"

"The software is like when you teach me the moves. Show me how to block, teach me kata, let me spar…it's all the things that show me how you want me to do things." She explained.

"So, the software can't do what it's meant to if it doesn't have the hardware to support it…"

"Just like the hardware is no more useful if it doesn't have the right software." She concluded. Dane looked to her for a moment, before she looked away and got a large roll out of her bag, unrolling it. He saw a massive number of flash drives and blinked.

"Wow, that is…um…that is a LOT of…computer…stuff." He said awkwardly. She just shrugged.

"You have seen the armoury you have in the shed right?" She asked as she plugged in a flash drive. "Same principal. I have different tools for different jobs. This should get most of the basics onto your computer, it should only take a couple of hours to upload."

"Emma, about before…" Dane said regretfully as he saw her staring at the screen.

"It's fine." She interrupted him abruptly.

Dane could tell that she was still hurt. He had hoped that being honest with her would somehow make it seem less like he was trying to justify himself or make himself out to be some kind of victim or innocent party. He was about to try and talk to her again when her phone buzzed. She picked it up, seeing a text from Sandy.

"EMMA! THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE WEAPONS!" The text message read, in all caps with several exclamation points. While Sandy could get pretty emotive in her texting, especially since it was the only way she could use her phone to communicate.

"What's going on?" Dane asked.

"Sandy said there's something wrong with the weapons." Emma told him, before texting back.

"What do you mean, something wrong?" Emma asked.

"We can't summon any of our gear!" Sandy texted back. "Brax is back! He's kicking our asses!"

Sandy furrowed her brows as she read this.

"Wait, are you texting in the middle of a battle?" Emma asked her. "Why are you using your phone?"

"BECAUSE THE COMMUNICATORS DON'T WORK EITHER!" Emma texted back. "CAN YOU PLEASE DO SOMETHING WHILE WE'RE STILL ALIVE?"

Emma just gulped.

"Get out of there NOW!" She texted back.

"Take me to the school!" She told Dane.

"Wait, what about…?"

"It'll take at least a couple of hours for that to upload." She told him. "The team need us!"

"Say no more." Dane replied, picking up the keys. "Come on!"

A little while later, Emma and Dane arrived in the Ranger Base, finding the team tending to their injuries. Brax was a powerful opponent, easily on the level of Galvanax. Going up against him again was always going to be a tall order, but without weapons, it was verging on the point of suicidal. Redbot was doing his best to tend to the team, while those that had already been seen or who were a little less banged up were helping him to patch up the others.

Mick was at the computer, staring at the screen, running a diagnostic. He was looking alarmed as he shook his head in confusion.

"Warning, virus infection alert. Warning!" The computer repeated over and over as he stared at the screen, punching in commands to no avail.

"Our computer systems are under attack!" Mick told them. "Somehow, the Badonna's goons have managed to access our systems and install a virus that's blocking all access to your weapons and equipment."

"Access…well, can we just take them with us?" Levi asked as he held an ice pack to the back of his head.

"Well, you could but…without accessing their data, they'd be kind of like fancy clubs." Mick told him. "You'd be as well using anything you find lying around."

"How could they even access our network?" Emma asked as she came into the room. "I specifically set it up on its own network so they'd need to access it directly. They'd need to be in here and access this computer themselves to upload a virus."

"What about the weapons themselves?" Brody asked. "That other monster, that Typeface, he was at the farm, remember? What if he did something to my sword?"

"That wouldn't work, the network is compartmentalised." Emma told him. "Anything he did would only affect your sword."

"Uh…what if…someone had kinda…linked them all?" Sarah asked with a pained expression on her face. Emma just looked to her.

"What did you do?" She asked.

"Well, I noticed you were kind of taking on a lot and had a lot on with going to the farm and everything so I thought I'd help out with a program that allows us to do a diagnostic on all the weapons at the same time." She told her. Emma took a look at Sarah's program. It was a good piece of coding, but it did have one major flaw. It linked all of the weapons and the mainframe together. Emma started shaking her head.

"No, no, no, no, NO!" She muttered.

"What? Is it bad?" Dane asked her.

"Oh…it's bad." She told him. "Now, you can't access any of your equipment, or any of your Zords. Basically, if you go out again, you're sucking wind."

"And without our Zords, if Brax decides to go big…"

"Goodbye Summer Cove." Sarah sighed as she covered her face with her hands. "I'm sorry guys, I thought I was helping…"

"It's fine, now I can see this, I know what I'm up against." Emma told them. "Oh boy, that's a nasty one. You guys get ready in case you have to hold of Brax again."

"Go up against him again?" Preston asked. "Yeah, because that's something I'm looking forward to!"

"Typeface, you are a tricky one." Emma stated. "This anti-virus program won't work."

She pulled the roll out of her bag and unravelled it on the desk.

"Just as well I have a few weapons of my own." She stated. Just then, an alarm sounded.

"Well, the good news is, the buzz-cam detector is working again." Redbot declared. "The bad news is…it's showing activity in the industrial quarter."

"So, what do we do?" Levi asked. "If Brax is there, without weapons we have about as much chance as a snow cone in an oven."

"Yeah, but a lot of those businesses are still in operation. People work down there." Sarah reminded him. "If we don't go, the people that work there have even less chance than that."

"So, what's the play?" Hayley asked.

"It's not much of a plan." Brody admitted. "We…use our fists."

"Yeah, I'm going on record as agreeing that's not much of a plan." Calvin answered.

"Emma, keep working on this, if we get anything back, blasters, swords, anything, then let us know." Brody told her. "In the meantime, guys, we need to get out there."

"We'll take Nitro!" Calvin told them. "Come on, let's go!"


	20. Digital Warfare

The Rangers arrived at the scene of the disturbance, finding to their dread that once again, Brax was indeed waiting for them. He had a wicked smile on his face as he sat on a pile of rubble that until recently had been a factory, tapping his sword impatiently on the ground.

"I was wondering when you would have the nerve to show your faces." He said mockingly as he played with his sword. Brody took a step forward.

"You're a fine one to talk about courage." Brody shot back. "You think we're stupid? You think your audience is stupid? You think they won't notice its a little odd you only come back when we don't have our weapons?"

"Only a weakling whines when things are tough." Brax replied in a sneer.

"It's easy enough for you to say. I remember you getting your ass snatched away by Badonna when I was seconds away from giving you a permanent centre parting." Sarah reminded him. "Talk about a coward? Only thing you'll prove today is that you need to have your flunky over there take our weapons away before you'll face us."

"Hey!" Typeface complained. "I'm no flunky, this is meant to be my fight!"

"Quiet you!" Brax growled. He got up, picking up his sword. "I'm done talking. Let's see how much talking you do when I rip your tongues from your heads!"

"That was…colourful, to say the least." Sandy commented. The other just looked at her. "What? It's not often these freaks have lips I can read, can you blame me being interested in what he had to say?"

"Go ahead Brax, do your worst!" Brody beckoned him. "But you'll only be proving to the whole universe what we already know."

Brax paused as he was preparing for his first assault, before staring at Brody.

"Even if you do beat us, what does it matter? Everyone saw, when we all had weapons, we sent you running with your tail between your legs." Brody continued. "Now only you're armed? Now you're here to finish the job. You're a joke, and you always will be!"

"You want me to even the odds? FINE!" He yelled, driving his sword into the ground, before rushing into the middle of them, punting all six of them in different directions in a flurry of attacks. The Rangers all looked up, seeing him showboating with a little kata as they rolled on the ground.

"So…your plan worked at least." Preston groaned. "At least he gave up the sword."

"Actually…I was kind of hoping he'd get Typeface to undo the virus." Brody grunted in response. "Alright guys, we're buying Emma time. Let's make sure we give Brax a really big bill!"

Over at the Ranger Base, Emma was scurrying around between computers, typing frantically and plugging various devices and flash drives into the computers as she worked. Dane watched her working, and it was like nothing he'd ever seen. He wasn't a complete Luddite, back when he was the Wind Ninja Sensei, Cam was already building up Ninja Ops, bringing the Academy into the digital age. The ninja were always adapting to new environments and new technologies. When their enemies started wearing armour, they started using crossbows. When their enemies started using katana, they wielded chains, flails and other weapons that would ensnare or entangle their blades, rendering them useless. A large part of the ninja philosophy was always being aware of what potential enemies were doing and figuring out ways to counteract them. That said, however, he was never going to be able to compete with Cam, and was more than happy to let him take care of things in the computer field.

Watching Emma work though, it was like nothing he'd ever seen before. Jumbled, garbled text and nonsensical symbols she seemed to navigate and read as instructions as clear as any of his ancient books. She hopped instinctively from one terminal to another, knowing just where to be and just what to do. He quickly stopped seeing the computer as a device, but a series of opponents. She always confronted each one at just the right time, putting herself into position to attack. She read where the attacks were coming and reacted with speed that seemed to be far beyond thought and verging into instinct, verging on pre-cognition.

"Wow, she's something isn't she?" Mick asked him. Dane just nodded.

"Mick, I…I have no idea what any of these things are even doing." Dane admitted. Mick just shrugged.

"It's a mystery to me too." He replied.

"Yeah, but…she's just…" Dane tried to think of what to say. "She's a…computer ninja."

"That's pretty much what I was thinking." Mick answered with a smile.

"Oh, you think you're clever? I could see THAT one coming a mile away!" Emma said with a distinct note of glee in her voice. "And now…now we REALLY play!"

Back at the site of the battle, the Rangers were getting beaten from pillar to post. Brax had kept his word and left his sword, but it looked like he was almost as deadly without it as he was with it. It didn't help that Typeface joined in the action meaning they couldn't even exploit their numbers advantage to the degree they'd like.

Brody felt like half the bones in his body jumped clean out of place as Brax slammed him to the ground. He was about to follow up when Sandy and Preston jumped him, desperately grappling with him to try and pull him away.

"You know, if this stupid lightning thing wants to start working, now would be a really good time!" Sandy screamed. Sarah meanwhile was attacking Typeface, trying to bring him down. She and Levi were doing a good job of keeping him isolated, but without their weapons, it was a little difficult to press the advantage too much. Pretty much all of their finishing attacks used one of their weapons or enhanced modes in some manner or another. Without them, they were sadly reduced to the rather less elegant option of trying to simply pound him into oblivion.

"What the hell is this guy made out of?" She complained breathlessly as she hammered into him with hard kicks. "My last I-phone smashed into a thousand pieces when it fell out my pocket!"

"You'll find it a lot harder than that to void my warranty!" He cackled as he blasted both of them away. "I'm created for destruction and built to last! It'll take a lot more than that to deal with MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Everyone, including Brax all looked around as he started to spark and convulse violently, like being attacked by an unseen hand.

"Sarah, how hard did you hit him?" Levi asked her.

"I barely touched him!" She responded. "My arms and legs feel like lead! I don't think I've been hitting him hard enough to cause a scratch in ages!"

"What's happening?" Typeface screamed. "Something is messing with my systems…"

"That would be me!" Emma announced over the communicators.

"Emma?" Preston asked. He saw Sandy looking at her and signalled Emma's name.

"What?" Typeface yelled. "You dare to…"

"You mess with our systems? You deal with me!" Emma told him. "You want to play hacker? Dude, I was hacking into Government databases when I was in grade school! You want to play? Let's play!"

Typeface immediately peeled off from the fight, beginning to mash the keys on his body as he locked into a duel with Emma over his own systems. She had managed to use the same pathways he had used to infect their systems to attack him! Brax saw him leaving and his eyes strayed to his sword. The Rangers all saw him looking toward it.

"Guys, don't let him get the sword!" Brody yelled as they all rushed to the attack.

Back in the Ranger Base, Mick was keeping a careful eye on the battle, while Dane watched his daughter engaged in a frantic online battle. She was simultaneously trying to keep the virus at bay, while also attacking Typeface, forcing him out of the battle as he had to concentrate on her attacks instead. She smirked as she started to take down his defences.

"It's all fun and games until someone's messing up your systems isn't it?" She taunted him.

"Emma, whatever you're doing, please do it faster." Mick rushed out in a panic, flailing as he watched the Rangers and Brax all pummelling each other.

"You're really not helping!" Emma said as she muttered something under her breath. Dane recognised it, she was cursing in Japanese, one of Mariko's favourite expressions of exasperation. Hearing it from Emma brought a lot back, and he could almost see Mariko facing off against a difficult opponent. He grabbed a chair and dragged it beside her, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Emma, just shut out everything else!" He told her. "Hey, just breathe, I believe in you. Just focus, you know this. You've got this."

"He's…he's really sneaky…" She said as her face showed confusion. "He's…he bypassed one of my defences…"

"And you'll have others!" Dane told her. "Emma, go for it! You know what you're doing! Just keep an eye on how he comes for you and when you see your opening, go for it with everything you have!"

"I've…I've almost…got it!" Emma yelled as she hit the last few keys. She threw her hands up in victory as she managed to send a signal back through Typeface's link. On the field, he quickly found his systems starting to jam, to overload, and before long he was shrieking out in agony. The Rangers and Brax all turned in time to watch him explode, raining debris down on the entire area.

"Guys, Typeface is gone, I managed to overload him." Emma told them. "The virus was on uplink, my programs are still working on it, but it should be gone in 3…2…1…"

With that, Brody looked to his hand, and a Ninja Star Blade appeared. One by one, the Rangers all found their weapons returning to them. Brax looked around frantically as he realised his advantage had left him. Levi summoned the Ninja Super Star Blade to his hand, clipping the Lion Fire Star into it.

"You…you think I'm scared of you?" Brax asked as he looked around the Rangers, finally retrieving his sword and beginning to look this way and that, trying to keep them in view.

"Either that or it suddenly got very cold." Sarah teased him. "You're shaking an awful lot Brax."

There was a flicker of white light around him, but it quickly dissipated. It flared up again, but disappeared just as quickly. He looked upwards.

"BADONNA!" Be bellowed. Emma got onto the communicators.

"Funny story, while I was in Typeface's system, I managed to find a frequency for the Warrior Dome's teleporter and was able to block it." She told them. Brody just smiled.

"Thanks sis." He stated. "Alright guys, you know what to do!"

He and Calvin rushed Brax first, Calvin swinging high to force Brax to guard his face, which allowed Brody to bring his powered blade across his abdomen.

Hayley and Sarah were next, with Sarah darting in from the left, drawing his guard to block her, while Hayley winged him, hacking into his right elbow. His arm fell uselessly at his side, leaving him only one arm to hold his sword in.

Preston and Sandy were next, with Preston taking the lead, striking out from a distance and forcing Brax to reach for him. This extension allowed Sandy to get a clear shot at his wrist, sending his sword spinning away from him, landing on the ground several feet from him. They both spun around connecting with the back of his legs, hamstringing him to prevent him running.

He looked towards Levi as he powered up the Super Star Blade, which glowed brightly as he summoned all the power into it he could. He surged towards him, bringing the sword down in an overhand strike, from head down. Brax slumped backwards, before exploding in a massive fireball.

"Sorry Badonna, it looks like there's been a fatal error." Levi said into the nearest Buzz-Cam. "Show's over, Ninjas Win!"

Up on the Warrior Dome, Cosmo was finally starting to get the audience back. They'd been glued to the battle, the Rangers struggle against Brax finally reviving their interest. He brought the console onto the stage.

"Ladies and Gentlemen. Brax's return really tested the Rangers to their limits!" Cosmo declared. "Now, do you want to see how much they have left in the…HEY!"

He was unceremoniously shoved out of the way and onto the floor as Badonna and Tynamonn ran onto the stage. Even though Brax easily had the cheers to warrant it, Badonna didn't wait for the results of the poll, mashing her had down on the Gigantify command.

"You Rangers have been a headache for far too long!" She shrieked. "Rise, Braxy my darling, and destroy everything they hold dear!"

Down on the ground, the Rangers all started to back away as they saw Brax starting to grow.

"Does anyone have any paracetamol because this guy's getting to be a real headache." Preston commented.

Levi took the Lion Fire Star from his sword, handing it to Sandy.

"I say we turn up the heat, all the way!" Brody just nodded in agreement.

They summoned the Blaze Megazord, forming it up as he started to take his frustrations out on the city. Before he got more than a couple of blocks, the Rangers intercepted him, grappling with him before he could attack a high-rise office block that had to have hundreds of people in it.

"Man he is not giving up easily!" Calvin remarked. Brax managed to break out of their grip and take up his sword, slashing into them.

"WHOA!" Preston screamed as his control console all but exploded, and fire retardant started to spray all over his console. "He is not messing around!"

"Guys, all our systems are tanking harder than the critics scores for Batman Vs Superman!" Sarah told them as she tried to maintain control. "Another few minutes of this and he's going to be wearing us as a trophy!"

"Then it's time to use our HEADS!" Brody yelled, smashing the Blaze Megazord's head into his face. By the time he'd done staggering, Sandy had brought the Lion Fire Megazord into position.

"Sorry I'm late guys." She told them. "I need to work on landings…I really hope the local conservatory has insurance."

"I think they'd need a lot more than insurance if it wasn't for us." Hayley said as they activated the sequence, bringing the Blaze Ultrazord together. They all appeared in the cockpit together, beginning to rumble towards Brax.

"No, stop! HAVE MERCY!" He screamed as they confronted him.

"How many asked you for the same thing?" Brody replied. "Alright, everyone, final attack!"

The front cannon on the chest of the Blaze Megazord roared into life, firing Preston, Sandy, Sarah, Calvin, Hayley and Levi in a streak of light, straight through Brax. Brody appeared on the top of the Ultrazord, powering up its main weapons, which all burst into life on his command. Brax's sword shattered under the assault as he tried in vain to block. He started sparking as he lurched forward a couple of paces.

"Forgive me Badonna! I've failed you!" He called out as he fell forward, exploding in a devastating fireball. Brody and the team all finally took the time to relax.

"I don't know about you guys, but I for one will be glad if THIS episode doesn't have any re-runs!" Calvin stated. Brody nodded in agreement.

"You said it Cal." Brody announced. "Show's over, Ninjas WIN!"

Up on the Warrior Dome, the fans were thrilled with the latest episode, finally back to seeing the show run within the rules they had come to expect. They didn't suspect for a minute the only reason Brax wasn't saved a second time was because Emma had managed to infect the teleporter, preventing Badonna from saving him.

The only people who weren't happy were Badonna and Tynamonn. Tynamonn had been Brax's manager for years, and had just watched his meal-ticket quite literally going up in flames. Badonna on the other hand, had seen her beloved Brax fall, unable now to have him as her own.

"This is all your fault you lunatic!" Tynamonn screamed at her. "If you'd just waited until Brax was ready…"

"Don't you think I feel bad enough?" She wailed as she threw herself onto the throne, picking up a picture of Brax that she had kept nearby. "Oh, Braxy, don't worry my love, I'll avenge you…"

"Avenge him?" Tynamonn asked her. "What about me? I've just lost my main source of income!"

"Shut up and get out of here!" She screamed at him, summoning some kudabots to drag him away. "Take him to the dungeon!"

"WHAT?" He screamed.

"I never want to see him again until I figure out what use you have you tiny, insignificant little gnome!" She bellowed as he was dragged away. She clutched the picture of Brax to her chest and let out a mournful cry.

In his office, Cosmo had seen the whole thing on his monitor. He wasn't happy about losing Brax, so far he had been the closest to actually defeating the Rangers, but seeing Badonna so miserable, and seeing her credibility as the figurehead of Galaxy Warriors plummeting by the minute, he couldn't help but take solace.

"Soon, Lord Drakkon will be ready to come." He declared. "In the meantime, it just falls to us to clear the decks a little for his arrival."

Wrench stepped out of the shadows, his systems completely overhauled with a brand new upgrade courtesy of one of Drakkon's allies. He now had a large, golden armoured harness across his chest, which sprouted spiked shoulder pieces, and housed a large, red stone in the centre. He wielded his axe in his right hand, which had been increased in size dramatically, and now connected to his power harness by cables coiling up his arm. His left hand had been replaced by a wicked looking claw, which also connected to the harness.

"And I get to finally settle my score with the Pink Ranger!" Wrench declared, holding up the claw. "I just need to go and get a charge!"

Down on Earth, the party had all separated after debriefing following the battle. They had a lot of preparation to do and they were eager to get some rest in. Not only had they just faced one of their most powerful enemies, the Warrior Dome had sent them three monsters within the same week. It was unprecedented, and smacked a little of impatience, perhaps even desperation. The one thing it showed was that they were now willing to throw far more resources their way, which meant something big was coming. Something they needed to be ready for.

As Calvin brought Hayley to her dad's apartment, he stopped with her and looked to her.

"You want me to come in for a little while?" He asked. Hayley had told him that things got a little messy when Laura invited them over for dinner. Hayley just sighed and shook her head.

"I think I'll probably just slip in quietly, get something out the fridge and go to bed." She sighed. Calvin reached up to her face, caressing it softly.

"Hey, whatever you need, you know you only have to call, right?" He asked her. She just smiled and nodded.

"I'm really sorry, I know I promised I'd help you more this weekend." She told him. "When we get back to school, I promise we'll set aside as much time as you need."

Calvin brought her in, kissing her softly, before walking away. His own difficulties at school were still weighing on him, but right now he was more concerned with Hayley.

Hayley watched him go, regretting not having the time to help him properly. It wasn't a secret Calvin's grades were behind the others' but what she knew more than anyone else was how much it bothered him. Calvin was so laid-back and cheerful, people generally presumed he didn't care about his grades and that he was happy to settle into the middle of the field. Calvin did have big dreams that he didn't talk about much. Nothing set in concrete, but he'd talked to her about everything from running his own garage to starting up a racing team. The kind of things that he knew all too well would take a lot more than a good working knowledge of an engine and his word. Banks and investors trusted paper and references a lot more than they trusted the word of an eighteen year old who could easily be considered a master mechanic.

She just headed up to Maxie's apartment, quietly letting herself in.

Over at Millport, Dane and Brody were standing by as Emma booted up Dane's brand new computer. She let out a squeal of excitement as it came up.

"Everything's all loaded up and ready to go!" She declared as she showed them the computer. "Here's your web browser, here's the office packages, and here's all your multimedia. All you have to do is upload what you want into it."

"Like what?" Brody asked her. She just shrugged.

"I don't know. Family pictures, videos…maybe do some financial spreadsheets." She suggested.

"Financial spreadsheets?" They asked, looking to each other. She just nodded, before looking to Dane.

"I know you like the informal setting of the odd-job thing, but sooner or later the IRS is going to want to ask about your receipts." She reminded him. "And you were talking about maybe making furniture? Well…I was thinking you could maybe start a home business after college."

"Start my own business?" Brody asked her. She looked to him.

"Well, why not?" She asked him. "I mean, what do you really need that isn't already in the workshop? If we all put our heads together we can make it kind of a joint thing, really streamline…"

"Are you talking about a family business?" Brody asked as he smiled. She just nodded.

"Yeah, why not?" She asked him. "You both basically want to do similar work, you could split the expertise between you."

"I…don't know what to say." Brody said with a shrug. "I mean, it is something to think about, right dad?"

"Romero and…" He started to say, before looking to Emma. "Family."

"You'd want me in on this?" She asked them.

"I know wood and I know metal, but this stuff? I'm a white belt!" He admitted.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I think I'm going to start dinner before my baby sister decides to have us taking over the world furniture market." Brody said, shoving her playfully before he left the room. As he did, she couldn't help seeing Dane looking at her.

"Um…you know, it was only an idea." She said. "I know I get caught up in things and…"

"It's not that." He told her. "What you did today, the way you took on Typeface…you were so in control, so determined so…"

He had to compose himself as he tried to find the words.

"Your mother was one of the most unstoppable people I've ever known." Dane told her. "It was one of the things I loved most about her. And today, you reminded me so much of her."

A tear rolled down her face as she heard him talking so fondly of Mariko. He drew her in, hugging her warmly.

"OK, so I have some tins of…oh…" Brody said, coming in to see them hugging. He just backed out of the room quietly. He figured right now, the last thing either of them would care about was chilli.

Calvin was most of the way home when he came across a young woman, resting by her car with her phone out. She was pacing a little impatiently. He could see that the hood was open, and figured she had to have broken down. He pulled Nitro over and applied the parking brake, before heading towards her.

"Hey, you OK there?" Calvin asked her.

"Yeah, I'm just waiting for the tow truck." She told him. "Stupid car, I just left it parked here while I dropped off my boyfriend and now it won't start."

"You want me to take a look at it?" Calvin asked her. She just looked to him a little sceptically.

"I think I'll just wait." She told him.

"I know a little about engines." Calvin told her. "You said it won't start. Mind trying to turn her over for me?"

The woman rolled her eyes, before going into the car. She turned the key, but absolutely nothing happened. Calvin just looked into the engine.

"It looks like it's the battery." He told her. "If it was anything else, the starter motor would have at least tried to turn over, but since it didn't clearly the battery isn't triggering the starter motor."

"Great." She grumbled. "Now I need a new battery."

"I don't think that should be necessary." He said, before heading back to Nitro. He got out some jumper cables, connecting them to his own engine, and then to hers. He headed to Nitro and got in.

"Alright, when I turn her over, you hit the ignition." He told her. He started up Nitro, at which the woman did the same with her car. It took a little while, but the car finally came to life. As Calvin turned off Nitro, he came to disconnect the jumper cables.

"Thank you!" She said, before reaching for the keys. Calvin darted forward.

"NO!" He called out. "I just gave you a jump, if you turn off the engine now, the battery won't have enough juice in it to start up again."

"What use is that?" She asked him.

"Don't worry about it, the alternator works as a battery charger, it'll recharge the battery while you're driving." Calvin told her. "Take it a decent run, along the freeway and back or something, and that'll give you plenty to get it started tomorrow. Over time, you should recharge your battery. Just don't leave on your lights or anything while the engine's off."

"Thanks kid!" She said as he tow truck arrived. She just pulled away, leaving Calvin to wind up his jumper cables. The tow truck driver approached him.

"Well, that's nice, she called me to give her a tow and now she's just driving off!" He complained.

"It's fine, she just needed a boost." Calvin told him, putting the cables back into Nitro. "I'd like to know what drained her battery so quickly."

"Wait, so you're telling me that you fixed her car…and cost me a callout?" The tow truck driver asked. Calvin gulped. He hadn't thought about that part. He'd only intended to help.

"Uh…I guess?" He offered weakly. "Sorry?"

The tow truck driver didn't look particularly amused, but he thought about it for a moment before looking back to him.

"That woman called me five times in the last half hour, the last time she called me was about ten minutes ago." He mused. "When did you get here?"

"Maybe…five minutes ago?" Calvin offered.

"And you figured out what was wrong and got her on her way that quickly?" He asked. Calvin just shrugged.

"I know engines." He stated. The tow truck driver stroked his chin.

"What are you? 19? 21?"

"I'm 18." Calvin told him. The man just inspected him for a moment. "What?"

"Kid…would you be interested in a job?" He asked, offering him a handshake.


	21. A New Opportunity

As Monday rolled around, Calvin was excited to begin a new week for the first time in a long time. His life was never particularly short of excitement since becoming a Ranger. However, there was just something about facing monsters that wanted to dismember, eviscerate or decapitate him on a regular occurrence that meant he was so used to an adrenaline high by now that it was just a little difficult to get himself excited to go to class and discuss some book or learn to bake things he could buy in any store for just a few dollars.

But today, today he was beginning a new adventure. It had been complete happenstance that he had encountered Joe on the side of the road after helping a woman that had broken down. He wasn't exactly happy that Calvin had fixed the car before he arrived and cost him a call-out, but he was impressed that Calvin was able to diagnose and solve the issue so quickly that the woman was driving away as he arrived.

He came back through from the shower, humming to himself and looked to the uniform laid out on the bed waiting for him. A black and red polo shirt with the name "Joe's Towing" stitched onto the right side of the chest. Above it, a baseball cap was there in the same colours with the same logo. Calvin couldn't help admiring his new uniform for a few moments before starting to get dressed. Joe didn't really care what else he wore as long as it was appropriate for the work. Sturdy shoes with no open toes for obvious safety reasons and hard-wearing trousers were preferred. Calvin had only worn trainers for comfort and work boots when he was going to help his mom in the garage for some time out of habit ever since he'd dropped a wrench on his foot as a kid anyway, and as for trousers? He decided on an old pair of black denims. Light colours only showed up stains and those were inevitable when working on engines, which was why many mechanics tended to favour black and dark blue for their overalls.

He finished getting dressed, pulling his cap onto his head and admired himself in the mirror. He took a deep breath and started to rehears.

"Joe's towing! There's nothing we can't fix!" He said, before thinking it over. "Good day! We're Joe's towing! What seems to be the problem?"

"Calvin! You need to hurry up if you're going to pick up Hayley!" His mom called up from the living room.

"I'm coming mom!" He called back, smiling at his reflection. "I'm ready!"

He picked up an envelope and ran down the stairs, coming into the kitchen where his mom and dad were getting ready for the day ahead. His dad was dressed in a suit, preparing for another day in the office, while his mom had her overalls on.

"I swear, Eddie wouldn't have to have his car in here half as often if he bought an automatic." Mrs Maxwell said, continuing a story that she was obviously telling her husband before Calvin arrived. Mr Maxwell was paying it his usual lip-service level of interest, nodding in agreement as he went through the morning mail. He was supportive of his wife's sideline in repairing cars for the neighbours in exchange for small payments or more often than not favours. However, he really was about as interested in how an internal engine worked as Calvin was about English class. "You know, that or learned how to drive a stick shift. I think this is the third time I've replaced his clutch in five years?"

Calvin sat down, grabbing some toast and the jar of peanut butter, beginning to spread hurriedly.

"Great! You got the crunchy!" He commented as he started slathering it on thickly. Mr and Mrs Maxwell just looked to him.

"Joe's towing?" Ava asked him.

"Is there something you want to tell us Calvin?" Dave asked him in response. Calvin just carried on what he was doing.

"Oh, yeah, the greatest thing happened the other day. I was on my way home when I saw someone broken down. I helped fix her car before the tow truck got there, next thing I know he's offered me a job!"

"You got a job?" Dave asked him. "You didn't think this was something you should talk to us about?"

"Well..."

"No, I'm sure it'll be fine, a part-time job can be good for a kid." Ava said, putting some sugar into her coffee and stirring it. She could understand why Dave was a little worried about the prospect of Calvin having a job. It was a distraction at a very important time of his life. Even many of the kids that did have jobs were winding down the number of shifts they took as they got closer to the exams. However, she also knew that outright forbidding him from doing something he wanted to do would likely only cause him to push back. "I mean, I would love it if he worked for me, but it's not like we pay him is it?"

"What's the contract like?" Dave asked him. Calvin just shrugged.

"We had a handshake." He replied.

"People can forget handshakes." Dave told him, a distinct bite in his tone. He didn't necessarily hate the idea of Calvin getting a job, it was something that was likely to happen soon enough anyway, but he really wanted him to concentrate for the next little while at least. "You should get something in writing..."

"Oh for goodness sake Dave, it's a part-time job!" Ava cut in. "But your father has a point. Has this Joe told you when you can see a contract that tells you what the job entails?"

"He said he'll draw something up soon." Calvin replied with a shrug. He didn't really care much for paperwork. He just wanted to get stuck in and get started on his dream job. He'd wanted to be a professional mechanic since before he was even able to say the word 'Mechanic'. "I should really get going; Hayley's going to be waiting for me."

"Bring us that contract!" Dave called after him as he ran out the door. Ava just looked to him. "What?"

"Don't spoil it for him." She told him. "A job could be great for him."

"I'm not disputing that. I just don't want to see him get screwed over." Dave assured her.

"Getting screwed over on pay and conditions in your first job is a rite of passage." She protested. "It's a life lesson every kid needs to go through. Besides, for all you know Joe could be on the level."

"I guess I'm just a little bit more cynical about a man that hires a kid off the street with a handshake deal." Dave told her.

"Oh, I know you're a cynic alright." She replied as she got up, kissing his cheek and heading for her garage. "Now, if you'll excuse me, Eddie's clutch isn't going to replace itself."

In another part of the city, Victor and Monty were walking into school for another week. They'd both been talked out of quitting as security deputies, and Clint had committed to spending more of his time teaching them the reasoning behind the rules.

"Yeah, I mean those workout tips are really working. I mean look at these guns!" Monty said, flexing his arm, showing off his muscle, or at least the beginnings of one. His arms were at least not just very pale, straight lines anymore, even if there was only a minor curve. "I mean...it's still kind of a cap pistol compared to anyone else's but...it's something right?"

"Sure is Monty. There was a time I was just starting out too." Victor reminded him, slapping him on the back, almost toppling him. As they rounded a corner, Victor paused. Monty looked up ahead to see what he was looking at. Sarah was on the ground, a little way from them, inspecting her hoverboard. She looked very agitated, and was swearing loudly at it.

"It looks like she's fallen off her board." Monty stated.

"I can see that Monty." Victor sighed. "Oh, wait, did that new comic you wanted not just come out? The shop's this way right?"

"Hey, Sarah!" Monty called out, running over. Victor just let out a sigh and ran after him. Sarah was shaking her board and yelling at it. "Are you alright?"

"Stupid bloody...some maniac just swerved right out of nowhere on his bike! I swerved right into that lamp post!" She complained.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" Monty asked her. She just looked to him.

"I should be fine Monty." She told him. "I get pounded by huge monsters all the OW! OW, OW, OW, OW!"

She started limping a little and hopping as she got back to her feet. She looked down at her leg, seeing her leggings were torn, and she had some nasty looking grazes the length of her calf.

"Oh, great, I just got these!" She whined.

"What about your leg?" Monty asked.

"I should be fine." She told him. "I've had worse."

"Yeah, you see, she's fine." Victor rushed out. "You want to go get that comic..."

"OW!" Sarah called out again, hobbling another couple of steps.

"Victor, we can't leave her like this, she needs to see the nurse!" Monty told him.

"I'll be fine Monty, in case you forgot; I heal pretty quickly...OW!" She called out again as she tried to hobble away, coming to rest on a lamp post. She did indeed heal quickly, as did all the others. It was one of the fringe benefits of the Morphing Grid, something of a necessary one. Most of the Rangers up until now would likely have not lasted more than a few weeks if their bodies healed at a natural rate, but that healing wasn't instantaneous. She looked towards Victor, painfully aware of the fact he was there. She just bit her lip.

"Look, I know you'll probably be fine by the time we get to first break, but you're clearly not going anywhere now!" Monty told her, beginning to pick up her stuff. "You're the Pink Ranger, not Deadpool! Victor, come and help her."

"Uh..." He said, looking towards Sarah. Monty just gestured him towards her.

"Come on, help her!" Monty told him. Victor was uncomfortable getting so close to Sarah, but as he saw her struggling, he just couldn't watch any longer. He came over, positioning himself under her arm for support, putting his arm around her.

"It's alright, I've got you." He told her, at which she looked at him. "Um...I mean...just...put your weight on me. I'll help you."

Sarah could feel his arm around him and inside, her brain was screaming. If she was able to run she would, but her leg was in no fit state to take her anywhere any time soon. In about twenty minutes or so she'd be fine but right now, her options were hopping or waiting until it healed.

"Thanks." She whispered as they started to walk along the road. Victor tried not to look at her, hoping she wouldn't think he was staring. He couldn't think where to put his hands. The one on her arm was just to hold it over his shoulder, but the one around her waist, was it too high? Too low? Was he holding her too tight? He ended up focusing on his feet for a few steps until he stumbled, almost putting both of them on the pavement. He then looked up.

"Sorry." He said awkwardly as he looked to the road back ahead.

As they walked, Monty finished gathering up Sarah's things and followed them. He could see both of them shuffling, Sarah trying hard to look at anything other than Victor, while he did the same. A little smirk crossed his face as he started to follow them.

In another part of the city, Hayley was waiting outside her dad's apartment, checking her watch as Calvin was running late. She saw Nitro rounding the corner and picked up her bag as he pulled up to the curb.

"Finally." She said as she got in. "I was beginning to think you were..."

Calvin presented her with a large, white bouquet as she opened the door. She got in, smiling as she buckled up her seatbelt, before taking the bouquet from him.

"Sorry I'm late; I just had to make a little detour." He said as she smelled the fragrance.

"Cal, they're beautiful." She gushed as she held onto them. "What's the occasion?"

"Not that there has to be an occasion for me to treat my wonderful girlfriend, but I'm celebrating." He told her, gesturing to his uniform. "I'm going to be getting a little more scratch from now on. Your man is now a working man."

"You got a job?" She asked him. "Cal, you only dropped me off last night. How did that happen?"

"You know what they say; it's about being in the right place at the right time." He told her as he pulled away from the curb. "Now, how about we go get you some coffee? Not that stuff the vending machine calls coffee, but real stuff."

"You know? I think I like this working man." Hayley said with a smile as they drove off.

At the school, Sarah, Victor and Monty were just getting to the school. Sarah's leg was already starting to heal up, and she could put a little more weight on it. As they got to the school gates, Victor released her.

"Are you sure you don't want to go and see the nurse?" He asked her.

"By now I'd feel like a drama queen if I did. Look, you can barely even see it now." She told him. "To be honest I'm more pissed about the leggings than anything else."

"Well, they were really nice leggings." He said.

'WHAT?' His brain screamed at him. 'You idiot, why did you say that? Oh, that's right, because you're a moron! Oh, now she's looking at you, she probably thinks you're a pathetic loser with a line like that. Oh, now she's furrowing her brows, well, say something genius! Try and save this!'

"Um...you know, as much as I know about leggings." He said. "I mean, it's not like I wear them or anything."

'Bravo!' His brain said sarcastically. He could hear a slow, sarcastic clapping in his head.

"Um...thanks." She responded. "I mean, I liked them...that's why I bought them."

'OK, am I just on vacation here or what?' Sarah's brain taunted her. 'Get the hell out of here you idiot!'

"Well, as long as you're sure." Victor said nervously. Sarah just smiled.

"Thanks for the help." She told him, putting a hand on his shoulder, before recoiling it sharply. "Um...OK, see you around?"

As she limped away to find her friends, Victor just rested against the hand rail of the stairs. He looked to Monty, who had a big, shit-eating grin on his face.

"What?" He asked.

"Oh, nothing." Monty teased him.

"Wait, you think...?" He said, gesturing between himself and the school. "Monty, please, there is nothing there."

"Oh...oh yes, there's nothing there alright." Monty replied in a mocking tone. "And in other news, I just suddenly went deaf, blind and lost all powers of basic observation."

"Monty, you couldn't be further from the mark." Victor said to him. Just then, Sarah came back, scurrying down the stairs. Victor recoiled, breathing in sharply and holding his breath.

"Damn, I was in such a hurry I forgot my stuff." She said.

'Yup, I'm definitely on vacation here.' Her brain said as Sarah looked to Victor and Monty, taking back her bag and her board. "Thanks again."

"Hey, how many times do you help us right?" Victor said as she ran off. He bit into his fist, before turning around to see Monty with his shit-eating grin again. "You're so far off the mark!"

"Whatever you say." Monty replied. He didn't mean to just be mean to Victor, he was genuinely happy to see him having such feelings. Victor had been nothing but supportive when Monty was falling head over heels for Viera. He'd been the one that encouraged him the most in trying to get him to get together with her, and while ultimately the relationship ended when she had to reclaim her throne; it was still one of the happiest times of his life.

"Yes, glad we cleared that up." Victor told him. "Besides...we're friends...she wouldn't be..., are we going to Clint's office or what?"

Victor sprinted away, taking the steps three at a time. Monty just sighed and shook his head.

"You saw that, right?" He asked no one in particular. "Do I need to do everything?"

In the school canteen, Hayley and Calvin arrived, finding the others waiting for them at a table. Sarah was just showing the others her leg, relaying the tale.

"Yeah, I'm telling you, that asshole was a maniac! If I'd been a little slower I'd have had his handlebars tangled up in my ribcage!" She said, before seeing them coming. "Check it out! Someone's been getting spoiled!"

"I know! Cal just pulled up to the curb with these for me!" Hayley said as Sarah admired the bouquet.

"Aw...you're so lucky!" She said in a cutesy voice, before looking to Calvin. "You are just the sweetest!"

"Well, my generosity extends to more than just my girlfriend." He said, handing out coffees.

"Wow, I think I like this new Calvin." Brody commented. "So, what's with the new duds?"

"Oh, you mean my uniform?" He asked with a huge smile. "Guys, guess who's now a professional mechanic? Your Yellow Ranger is now a working man!"

"Wow, you got a job?" Preston asked. "That's cool!"

"Yeah, I've always wanted to be a professional mechanic, and then this guy just comes right up to me and offers me a job!" Calvin responded. "It's like my dream come true!"

"Yeah, a part-time job will be great!" Levi announced. "I still remember my first part-time job. Well...technically it was chores on The General's farm, but I used to collect eggs and milk cows for my allowance."

"Well, actually..."

"Mr Maxwell, what do we have here?" Principal Hastings asked as she came over, interrupting him. "Joe's towing? I believe I've used his services before."

"Yeah, I work there now!" Calvin told her proudly. "I've always wanted to be a professional mechanic and now I am!"

"Well, as pleased as I am for you, can I ask you not to wear your uniform to school?" She asked him. "This is a public school; we're not allowed to endorse businesses. It's the same reason we don't let kids walk around in McDonalds or Subway uniforms."

"Oh, right, well...no worries, I was only dropping Hayley off anyway." He told her. Everyone stopped and stared at him.

"Wait, what?" Hayley asked. "Dropping me off? What do you mean by that?"

Calvin pulled the envelope out of his back pocket and handed it to Principal Hastings.

"I was about to come by your office." Calvin told her. "Principal Hastings, I appreciate all you've done for me here, but I am officially dropping out of Summer Cove High."


	22. Calvin's New Job

Principal Hastings brought Calvin to her office after his declaration in the canteen. She was absolutely stunned by what she had heard. The sad fact was that in her time as an educator, of course she'd had kids drop out on her. Sometimes kids either weren't able to cope with the demands of education or needed assistance they just weren't getting in the current system, sometimes kids just threw it all away, either through frustration or boredom or because they felt like education wasn't doing them any favours. Every time, she always tried to help find a way to make them change their minds or find another way to help them get what they needed from the system, but sadly it would be a lie to say that always worked.

Calvin was a good kid, and she didn't want to see him become a statistic. She had asked him to come to the office to speak to her about his decision hoping to find out why he was suddenly dropping out. She had spoken to his teachers and knew that his grades were pretty average in many areas. In physical education, science and shop he excelled, but many of his other subjects he struggled a lot more in. Music, he was barely scraping a pass, English and maths, he was distinctly within the average range. He wasn't a bad student by any means, there were certainly worse coming through the school, but she knew that now was a time when a lot of kids were getting pretty serious disappointments in their hopes and dreams as rejection letters came in. She didn't know what the story was for Calvin, but she wouldn't have been surprised if his options were being limited by the fact his grades weren't setting him out from the crowd.

The rest of the team followed him in, clearly wanting to know more about this development. It was pretty clear to her that his announcement was as much a surprise to them as it was to her. She would have asked them to leave, to speak to Calvin on his own, but since she already knew about their activities as Rangers, she knew that there was really no point in trying to keep anything secret. They already shared more secrets than many groups of friends ever would. She just closed the door behind him.

"Well, that was quite a scene Calvin." She began, trying not to sound like she was giving him into trouble. "Would you like to talk to me about it?"

"I really don't know what there is to talk about." Calvin told her. "I thought about my options, and I decided to drop out."

"Cal, you're nowhere close to being done with High School." Hayley said, with a look of concern on her face. She was always supportive of Calvin, and she did like the new confidence that he showed when he picked her up this morning in his new uniform. She also had to like the flowers and the coffee, but right now she was a little concerned about him. They'd talked about a lot of the decisions they were planning to make together. Having been together for close to four years, they were pretty far along in their relationship and although they were young and hadn't talked in any serious way other than a 'someday' kind of way, they'd already spoken about some of the bigger questions any couple did. Where they wanted to live, whether or not they wanted to have children, whether or not they wanted to get married…they had talked about a lot of serious things, so it hurt a little that Calvin had made such a big decision without even talking to her.

"Hayls, it's my dream to be a pro mechanic!" He reminded her, looking between Hayley and Principal Hastings. "This is my chance! Besides, you know I'm not great at school. School's kind of tough for me."

"Just because it's tough doesn't mean you should give up." Preston told him.

"Yeah, I mean you guys have seen me training right?" Emma asked him. "It took me about a month to do a horse-stance without falling on my butt. But just because it's tough doesn't mean I gave up, it just made me more determined to try harder. You know, no pain no gain."

"Calvin, if you're having difficulty, we can always try and find ways to help you." Principal Hastings said, looking to him. "You're a fine young man, and I don't want to see you limit your options because you hit a few bumps in the road."

"You all seem to think I haven't thought about this. Being a mechanic is my passion! Joe says I know enough and I'm ready!" Calvin declared. "Besides, most of the education in engineering is practice. What's the point in me staying here when I could be out there doing something I love, learning from it and earning a living while I'm working?"

"Calvin, you're only 18. You'll have plenty of time to work." Principal Hastings assured him. "I've been teaching for…far more years than I'd like to admit, and I've not seen many cases where someone dropping out of school ends well."

"But it does happen!" Calvin interjected. "It's not like I'm leaving with nothing, I have a marketable skill. People are always going to break down and they're always going to need someone to fix their cars."

"Calvin, you're 18…"

"Yes, I'm 18, which means, with respect, I'm an adult and I can make my own decisions." Calvin interrupted Principal Hastings. "Please, I've thought about this. It's what I want to do. I really don't see what staying in school for another few months I could be working and earning money is going to achieve."

"Cal…"

"Hayley, most people leave school then go to college or university and end up with a mountain of debt they end up paying back their whole lives." Calvin interrupted her. "In a few months, once I've been earning, we could get a place together. I could support you while you go to college, it'll save you a fortune."

"Cal, that's sweet, but…are you sure about this?" She asked him. It did sound good to have a place of their own and an income. If they were both studying, they'd no doubt be working part-time jobs anyway, but college jobs were notoriously badly paid and the majority of people who went through college or university invariably did so with significant amounts of loans and debt, even if they did manage to get scholarships to cover tuition. The idea that one of them would be earning and taking some of that hit did sound appealing in a lot of ways, but she didn't want to think about herself right now.

"Guys, guys, yes, I'm sure!" Calvin said as he tried to reassure them. He always knew he'd meet resistance to his idea. It was one of the reasons he hadn't already told Hayley, or his friends, or even his parents yet about his decision. He was hoping that by the time he was already started in his job and people could see how happy it made him, that they would get over his decision to drop out. "Please support me."

"I'm…I'm not sure about your decision." Sarah sighed. "But you're my friend and I support that if nothing else."

"I guess I do too." Brody answered. He looked to Principal Hastings, who just looked to him sadly.

"Well, I'm sorry to see you go." She told him, shaking his hand, before pressing a button on her intercom. "Clint, could you come to my office please? I need you to escort someone from the premises."

"Wait, what?" Calvin asked. "Are you serious?"

"Isn't that a bit much?" Levi asked her.

"I'm sorry Calvin, but only staff and students are permitted on the school grounds." She told him. He let out a little laugh.

"You're kidding, right?" He asked her. "I mean, you know about our 'extra-curricular' activities, right?"

"Yes, I do." She told him. "Which is why I know that if I let you waltz all over school property when you no longer attend school people are going to wonder why I enforce the rules for other people but not for you."

"Principal Hastings, you can't be serious…"

"I'm afraid I am Brody." She interrupted the Red Ranger. "I don't want to draw attention to you any more than you do."

Just then, Clint came in the room.

"You wanted to see me Principal Hastings?" He asked her. She just nodded.

"Mr Maxwell has decided to leave Summer Cove High." She informed him. "I'd like you to escort him from the premises."

Calvin looked around the others, before he finally just shook his head.

"You know what? If you need to do this? That's fine with me." He stated bitterly. "I'm due to start work soon anyway."

With that, Calvin turned and left the room with Clint just a little way behind him. The others just turned to look at Principal Hastings.

"Was that really necessary?" Preston asked her.

"If Calvin isn't a student here, then I need to be seen to be abiding by the rules regarding visitors." She reiterated. "The way all of you come in and out of the school with all your ninja tricks and secret entrances, it won't stop him if he has to come to the paint room, but he can't just waltz in the front door whenever he feels like it."

"OK, we get it." Sandy responded. "I just hope that's the only reason you did it."

As they left, she just went behind her desk and leaned back in her chair, taking off her glasses and stroking the bridge of her nose. She pressed the button on the intercom, this time for her receptionist.

"Could you bring me a coffee please?" She asked.

"What would you like?" The receptionist asked her.

"Cream, lots of sugar and LOTS of it." She answered. She let out a huge sigh when she turned off the intercom. She didn't like being called out, but there was an element of truth in what Sandy had said. As much as she tried not to, she did always take it a little personally when she lost a student. It felt a little like a failure on her part when one of her kids walked out. As much as she was proud of the young man Calvin was becoming, and her part in it, as limited as it may be, she could only hope that he had made the right choice for him.

Later in the day, sitting in the cab of Joe's tow truck, Calvin was still feeling a little put out by the confrontation with Principal Hastings at the school. He always knew that his decision was going to receive some pushback. His friends had made it pretty clear they thought he was making a mistake, but at least they had been willing to accept that it was his decision. Hayley, she would come around eventually. He knew she wanted what was best for him, but he wanted what was best for her, and he couldn't think of what would be better than being able to provide for and support her while she was going through her education. It was pretty clear that Hayley had lofty goals and was going to go for them with everything she had.

What was so great about school anyway? It wasn't as though there was much more that school could really teach him that was relevant to what he wanted to do. He already knew engines way more intimately than many mechanics, and thanks to his enhanced abilities thanks to the Ninja Steel, he was effectively a master mechanic already. He didn't see what sitting in a classroom all day could do for him when Joe was willing to give him the job he wanted right now!

"Hey, you alright Cal?" Joe asked him.

"Huh?" He asked.

"It's just, you seem rather quiet." He told him. Calvin just sighed.

"It's fine, it's just…" He started to say. "I kind of had a fight with some of my friends. I don't think they were entirely cool with me leaving school."

"Really?" He asked. "They realise you've got a marketable skill, right?"

"Well…it wasn't a fight so much, they said they supported me, it's just…" Calvin groaned, trying to straighten out his thoughts. "I don't know, it's not that important."

"Well, I'm sure your friends are going to be a whole lot more supportive when you're the one paying for everything because you're the only one earning." Joe said with a smile. "I wasn't much older than you when I left school, I went to work in an auto shop. They had me run errands, wash cars that kind of thing, then they put me on an apprenticeship. You know what I always say? Better earning than learning. And if you can do both at the same time, all the better, right?"

"I know, that's what I thought." Calvin said as they pulled up into a parking lot. "OK, so which one is ours."

"All of them!" Joe said with a grin. Calvin just looked around. There were about half a dozen people standing next to cars with their hoods open. He did think it was a little unusual to have so many people break down at once.

"Hey, who are we to argue?" Joe asked him with a shrug. "Money's money."

"Any idea what's wrong with them?" Calvin asked.

"From the calls I've been getting it sounds like electrical faults." Joe told him.

"All of them?" Calvin asked again.

"Yeah, I've been getting a lot of them recently." Joe told him as they disembarked, gathering their tools. "Alright, who called for a mechanic?"

Everyone started talking at once, approaching them in an agitated manner. Joe just held up a hand.

"OK, OK, we'll get to everyone." He assured them. "You first ma'am."

"We'll take a look." Joe assured her.

"Cause there's nothing we can't fix!" Calvin said excitedly. With that, they started to get to work. Calvin took a moment as he looked down over his first engine as a professional mechanic. "Oh yeah, I made the right call alright."

Back at the school, the rest of the team were getting through the day's lessons, but it was still a little unusual to think that Calvin wasn't there. Levi almost called on him in music, the others found it more than a little strange to see his seat empty.

As morning break rolled around, Hayley tried to call him, but she couldn't get through. She just sighed as she hung up.

"Maybe he's just busy." Preston suggested with a little shrug. "I mean, that's a good thing, right? Last thing you want is for him to get laid off when he just got the job because there isn't enough business right?"

"Look, it's not the way we'd have chosen things to go, but…you know he's always wanted to be a mechanic, right?" Sarah said, trying to reassure her. "Maybe this think with Joe will be a good thing."

"It's only a couple of months to graduation." Hayley reminded them. "It's not like he'd have to wait a whole lot of time before he could star looking for something anyway if that's really what he wanted."

"You don't think it is?" Brody asked her.

"I'm just worried about him." Hayley told them.

"Look, I know he was bummed out that some of his test scores haven't been great lately." Sarah stated. "But I'm sure…"

"That's just it, you don't know how badly it affected him." She interrupted. "Cal's always had this way of being able to put a brave face on things, to make it seem like things don't really bother him too much, even if it's killing him inside. He was so worried about whether or not he'd get into a good apprenticeship or college."

"But Joe gave him a job already." Preston reminded her. "He doesn't really need anything like that if he already has the job, right?"

Hayley started dialling her phone.

"Hayls, you already know his phone is off." Sandy said.

"I'm not calling him." Hayley corrected her. "Hello, Mrs Maxwell? Um…yes, it's Hayley. I'm good, thanks. OK, that's maybe a bit of a stretch. Look, I just wanted to talk to you about Calvin."


	23. Calvin's Dream Job

**A/N:** Sorry for the delay in updates folks. Between some personal matters that demanded my attention and some focus on a key part of my Red Dead Redemption fic, I've not updated this in a few days. I apologise, and promise a couple of updates within the near future. Hope you enjoy it.

Calvin was having a ball on his first day as a real mechanic. Even though he was incredibly busy, so much so that he hadn't even really had a chance to get a proper tour or even spend a few minutes in Joe's shop to get acquainted with it. Their phones were ringing constantly and they were driving all over the city on pickups, and Cal was loving every minute of it!

Calvin was always a practical kind of guy, right from when he was a kid. When other kids liked action figures, he was always more drawn to things like Meccano, Lego…and Lego Technic. The kind of thing where he could build and shape things. His mom was buying him sets that were meant for kids a lot older than him very early on. He was the kind of guy that liked to solve problems, to fix things. Any time he saw something that was broken or something people said couldn't be fixed, he always took it as a personal challenge!

After his first day, Joe promised that he was going to properly run him through where everything was in the shop eventually, but Cal assured him that the job so far was everything he always hoped it would be. People called them, frantic and wondering how they were going to get home or how they were going to carry on with their day, and by the time he was finished, they were smiling and thanking them for getting them back on their journey. His recent performances in school had only left him feeling down. Every low grade felt like a punch in the gut. Every time he saw one of his friends getting excited over some acceptance letter they got or some scholarship that was coming their way, as much as he felt happy for them, just reminded him that he was caught in a patch of mud with his wheels spinning no matter how much he floored the accelerator. Here, he finally felt good about himself for the first time in months. It felt like a lot longer.

He waved Joe off as he ran around the back of the school. He still thought it was ridiculous that Principal Hastings had banned him from the grounds. With the skills he had learned from Brody, he could still get in and out easily enough through other means, but it honestly felt a little petty, spiteful that she wouldn't just let him use the front door just because he had decided to quit school.

He threw his bag over the back gate, before scaling the back, flipping over the top and landing nimbly in the yard while the others were training. He could see they were sparring, honing their skills. Admittedly he was a little late, having overshot the end of his shift, but as Joe said, money was money and as long as people were calling in repairs, then who cared if they finished at 4 or 5?

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late!" Calvin declared cheerfully as they all turned towards him. "Sorry I'm late, it's been non-stop!"

"But you do look happy, Mr Real Deal Mechanic." Emma said, greeting him. Hayley hung back a little as she saw this. Calvin clearly was happy, a lot happier than he'd been in a long time. She could only guess that he hadn't yet checked his phone. If he was riding with Joe, it was possible that they were using Joe's phone for the call outs. She'd called his parents to tell them that he'd dropped out, hoping they could talk to him, but seeing him so happy she had to wonder, had she done the right thing? Calvin would no doubt have to tell his parents eventually. They would no doubt figure it out soon enough, presuming he didn't just tell them himself once he had his first pay check, but seeing him this happy, she could only feel guilty knowing that he was probably going to walk unwittingly into a huge fight when he got home.

"Yeah, today was so busy, but it was so great! I got to help so many people!" Calvin told them happily. "The weird thing is, most of the cars we fixed today had the same issue."

"What do you mean?" Preston asked, putting his arm around Sandy's shoulders. The Green Ranger took his hand, pulling herself into him more tightly.

"Their electrical systems were totally fried." Calvin told them.

"Is that a common problem with Earth vehicles?" Mick asked. He was trying to get the answer out of Calvin, but he already knew the answer.

"Not really." Calvin told them. Joe was a mechanic, and also a tow truck service. The majority of cars that broke down on the side of the road it was one of a few very simple mechanical faults. By far the most common was a blow out, which would only require the changing of a tyre. Unless people hadn't replaced their spare, most people would have at least an emergency spare that would last until they could get to a shop for a proper replacement. After that, the most common cause was a car overheating, likely due to a faulty cooling system. Between refilling the water tank and waiting until the engine cooled down that was usually all that was required. The electrical systems though were often very far down the list.

Modern cars had a lot of electronic devices and systems. Ever since the first cars were sold with radios, more and more demands had been placed on the battery, but this problem had basically been countered by the use of an alternator. The alternator would generate power and recharge the battery while the engine was running, meaning that unless there was a problem with the alternator, in theory at least, the average car should never have to change or recharge its battery. Unless someone ran some of the electrical systems such as the a/c, the radio or the lights without turning off the engine, the battery should effectively never be drained. The most common cause of a car having a completely flat battery was someone leaving the lights on by mistake, which is why most cars had an alarm to remind people to turn off the lights when they opened the door while the lights were on. Calvin would expect to see a couple, maybe one or two cars a month that had problems with flat batteries, but in his first day, with the exception of a fender bender and two blow outs, every car he had seen had been a flat battery.

"Really? That's interesting." Mick said in his usual thoughtful way as he stroked his chin. Levi looked to him.

"What is it?" Levi asked.

"It's just…it's a pattern." Mick told him. "That's what it is. I just wonder what's causing it."

"I'm sure Joe will know." Calvin told him. "I can ask him tomorrow, but for now, who's up for some ninja training?"

With that, they all separated off to go train. Sarah noticed that Hayley was a little apprehensive about things. She came over.

"Are you…are you OK?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'm just…" She started to say nervously. "Sarah, do you think I did the right thing?"

"Oh…uh…I think I hear Brody calling…"

"SARAH!" She interrupted. The Pink Ranger just gulped.

"Um…well…" Sarah stammered a little nervously. "I guess, maybe it was Calvin's news to break to his parents?"

"Thanks." Hayley said dejectedly. "Thanks, I really needed that."

"Well, you did ask and…" Sarah started to say as Hayley threw down her sword and stormed off. "Wait, Hayley!"

"What's going on?" Calvin asked. Sarah's eyes went wide and she started stammering again.

"Um…well…you know…I think I should go find out!" She rushed out, running off. "Later!"

"What is with those two?" Calvin asked, before turning his attention to Levi. "Alright, let's get this workout started!"

Elsewhere in the city, Aaron was at the organic food market, doing some shopping. Although it was significantly more expensive, he and Maxie were extremely committed to knowing where their food came from and that it was responsibly sourced. His interest in the ocean went beyond just liking the creatures and plant life, but also in the entire eco system and more importantly mankind's impact on it. They had both always campaigned for better protections for the environment and more responsible care for it, but more than anything they knew that they couldn't really tell anyone else how to behave, but could change how they did. Although money could be tight at times, they were all too happy to spend a bit more in order to lead by example and practice what they preached.

He was just finishing up with the vegetable aisle when he ran into Trevor. They were both reaching for the same chicken. Aaron just looked to him.

"Oh…um…" They both stammered together. "You first…uh…"

They both laughed. Trevor gestured to him.

"You go ahead." Trevor told him. "I'm sure the one behind it is just as good."

"Thanks." Aaron told him. "So, you…got the nachos I see?"

"Laura really likes them." Trevor stated.

"I remember." Aaron chuckled. "I introduced them to her."

"Look, Aaron, about the other night…"

"It's…it's fine, really." Aaron answered.

"No, it's really not." Trevor responded. "Laura was just trying to defend me, and she can be a little…"

"Trevor, I think you forget I was married to her." Aaron assured him. "Laura's always defended those she cares about. I remember her getting involved in more than one fight when someone said something about her fish-loving, tree-hugging husband."

"I know, it's just…" Trevor sighed. "Look, what happened, all that stuff with the…you know…"

He made a little gesture with his hand to indicate the old Psycho Green Ranger helmet.

"I might not have been in control for a lot of it, but that doesn't mean I don't have to take some responsibility for what happened." Trevor continued. "It's also not like people don't have a right to be angry for some of the things that happened. I think Laura just wants everyone to forgive me and for things to get back to normal, but that's not going to happen quickly. Maybe it never will, that's just something I have to wear."

"I understand." Aaron replied. "For what it's worth, as someone that was married to her, if she's fighting your corner this hard, it just shows how much you mean to her."

"Thanks, that means a lot." He answered. "So…how's Maxie?"

"She's got a lot of work on right now." Aaron told him. "She's hoping to have her dissertation ready for the review board soon."

"That's really good to hear." Trevor told him. "I really hope it goes well."

"Thanks, that's appreciated." Aaron said. "I'll see you around?"

"I guess so." Trevor answered. "See you around."

With that, Aaron went to pay for his purchases, while Trevor went back to his shopping.

A little while later, Calvin was just arriving home after training with the others. He abandoned Nitro in the driveway and skipped up the path in the front door. He dumped his bag inside and headed through to the Living Room.

"Hey, what's for dinner? It smells great!" Calvin declared. His mom and dad didn't seem especially cheerful right now though. Normally by now his dad would be watching one of his sit coms, but the television was notably off. Both his parents were in the room, his mom sitting on the couch while his dad was standing in the middle of the room. Calvin couldn't help noticing they were both very quiet. "What's going on?"

"Calvin, sit down." His dad told him.

"Uh…OK?" He asked nervously. "Did I do something wrong?"

"He asked if he did something…can you believe…?" His dad started to rant, pacing impatiently. "Calvin, what are you thinking?"

"Thinking about what?" Calvin asked nervously. He was starting to get the impression that his parents had heard about his decision. He didn't really know how they had heard, but he could already tell his dad was livid. He was starting to go red and he was doing that thing with his glasses where he was preparing to take them off, like he was worried he was going to steam them up. He hadn't even changed out of his suit yet.

"You think this is funny?" He asked. "You just threw away your future!"

"Dad, I…"

"You quit school without even telling us? Without even talking to us about it?" He yelled at him.

"Look, I'm sorry, I didn't…I didn't think…"

"Well, it's clear you didn't think! You just turned your back on your education!" He snapped in anger. "Do you have any idea how hard I work so that you can go to school?"

"Look, don't think I'm not grateful, but I was offered a great job!" Calvin told them. "I helped some woman with her car, and a tow truck driver saw it and offered me a job!"

"Really? A tow truck driver just offered you a job off the corner of the street?" He asked. "You don't think there's something a little odd about that?"

"Dad, it's my dream job! I always wanted to be a mechanic!" Calvin told him. "Joe's told me I can work for him now."

"Calvin, sweetheart, I know you really want to be a mechanic." His mom said, trying to act as a peace-maker between them both. "But your high school diploma is really important…"

"Is it though?" Calvin asked. "I mean, mom, you've always told me you learned most of what you did working on cars after you left school, and there are people that own businesses that never graduated. There are even people in the Fortune 500 that never graduated High School…"

"And those people are in the minority Calvin!" His dad roared. "For every one that makes it there has to be about a million or more that end up on the street! Is that what you want?"

"Dad, I've got a job, I'm earning money!" Calvin told him. "I'm going to be fine…"

"Really? Has this Joe given you a contract yet?" He asked him.

"To be honest, it was kind of spur of the moment." Calvin told him honestly. "He said he'll get a contract to me soon."

"But you still quit school?" He asked. "Calvin, what are you thinking? You didn't even ask us…"

"Well, last time I checked I didn't need to ask you!" Calvin shot back, getting more than a little irritated by now. He didn't like it when people said he was stupid. His dad was still yelling at him. "I'm 18! I can make decisions for myself! I was going to tell you, I swear, but I was going to wait until I got my first pay check and you could see I was earning a living and I was actually enjoying what I was doing and I was…you know…good at it."

"We both know you're good with cars." His dad told him. "So why not just wait a couple of months until you graduate and then we can see about getting you into an apprenticeship or a college course or…"

"More school?" Calvin asked him. "Dad, I can do more than a lot of those people can right now! What difference does some stupid piece of paper make?"

"You think qualifications are stupid pieces of paper? Is that it?" His dad demanded. "I worked long and hard at university for my qualifications, that's why now I'm able to provide for you and your mother…"

"And last time I checked it was mom's job that supported you while you did it!" Calvin snapped at him. His dad looked taken aback by this. He and Ava had told Calvin the story many times. They'd met in High School, and after graduation, he'd gone to university. Ava had worked in a garage to make ends meet while he worked on his degree. "Forgive me if I want to do the same for Hayley."

"Calvin, you're going back to that school and you're going to tell them…"

"Or what? You can't make me!" Calvin told him. "It's my decision."

"Calvin, we love you." Ava insisted. "Please, think about this…"

"I have, and my minds made up." Calvin stated flatly. "I'm doing this for me and for Hayley."

"Well, at least one of you has some sense." His dad stated.

"What's that meant to mean?" Calvin asked him. However, before either of them could answer, he managed to make the connection himself. "Hayley told you?"

"She loves you Cal." Ava insisted. "She just wanted what's best for you."

"Why does everyone else think they know what's best for me?" Calvin yelled. "I'm going to my room!"

"Calvin, we're not done talking about this." His dad called after him.

"Well I am!" Calvin yelled as he stormed out of the room, slamming the door as he went.

The following morning, Calvin got ready and left the house before his parents were awake. He really could live without another fight with his parents.

He had also sent a message to Hayley to tell her that he couldn't give her a ride to school. He didn't have it in him to call and tell her why, he wanted to get his thoughts straight in his mind before he confronted her. He couldn't believe that she had gone to his parents behind his back. He didn't know what he was going to say to her when he finally saw her. He already knew that a lot of people wouldn't back him in his new job, but to think that Hayley was against him? He got to the shop, heading inside. At least he knew this would improve his mood. He found Joe at a desk, working on his computer.

"Cal, you're early!" Joe said with a smile on his face. "I like that!"

"Yeah, well, I was just keen to get started." Calvin told him. "What are you doing?"

"The boring side of the job!" He chuckled. "This is all the statements I need to send to the insurance companies for the call-outs."

"Yeah, about that…do you think there was something odd about that?" Calvin asked him. Joe just looked to him.

"What's odd?" Joe asked him.

"All those electrical faults." Calvin told him. "I mean, I'd expect maybe one or two every now and then but so many…what do you think is causing them?"

"I have no idea." Joe said with a shrug of the shoulders. Calvin looked at him a little oddly.

"Well, aren't you a little curious about what's causing them?" Calvin asked. "I mean, if it was the same make and model of car, I'd think it might be a factory error, but since it's more than one make…maybe there's a shop not fitting them right or selling defective replacements or something? Don't you want to figure it out?" Joe looked to him and came over with a smile, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Look, kiddo, a car mechanic's job is to fix cars." He told him. "As long as I'm doing that, I'm happy as a clam."

"But maybe there's something going on that's causing…"

"And it's not my job to figure that out. I'm not a detective." Joe told him. "I don't figure out why people's cars break down, I just fix them when they do."

"But…maybe if we found out what the problem was, we could…"

"We could what? Do ourselves out of business?" Joe asked him with a little chuckle. "We got called out to 56 breakdowns yesterday. We have a standard $50 call out fee that we charge to the insurance. That means yesterday we earned $2800 before we even touched a car. By the time we fixed them…we had a great day!"

"I…I guess." Calvin said a little unsure. It made sense for Joe to want to keep his business busy but not finding out why all his customers cars kept breaking down sounded a little off to him.

"Tell you what? I'll turn on my phone and see if we've got any more callouts. That'll cheer you, up right?" He asked. "Could you get those invoices from the printer?"

Calvin went to the printer as Joe turned on his phone to start his morning business. He was walking back towards Joe when he suddenly stopped in his tracks. He saw something on the invoice.

"Cal, we got our first…" Joe said as he saw him looking at the papers. "What is it?"

"I don't think you did this right." Calvin told him. "The 09 BMW it says you're charging for new connectors and a new battery but…we only gave it a jump."

"Cal, we dealt with a lot of cars…"

"No, I remember this one, because his cables were broken. I needed to hold the cables in place." Calvin reminded him. "You're charging for work you never did." Joe just chuckled.

"Look, it's an insurance job kid. The guy has breakdown cover, so we bill the insurance company. He doesn't get charged a cent." Joe explained as his phone started bleeping as more jobs came in. "Whoa, five already! OK, so, you want to get started?"

"Um…sure, I guess." Calvin said as he put the paperwork down on the desk and followed Joe out to the pickup truck. Joe tossed him the keys.

"The first one's on Maple." Joe told him. "Come on, time is money!"


	24. Charging By The Hour

In a parking lot, far from prying eyes, Wrench approached a car, placing his hands on the hood. Electricity arced up his arms and into his new, upgraded body. True to his word, Drakkon's upgrade would give him the power he was looking for to destroy the Rangers. It was a concept so simple, yet at the same time brilliant, he was amazed he had never thought of it himself. The new harness sealed onto his body was essentially a capacitor, designed to drain power, specifically electrical power, and storing it for future use. One time when he was fighting the Dino Charge Rangers, he had been inadvertently supercharged, and it had given him a power that made him almost a match for the whole team. The only problem was his systems weren't built to handle that kind of power and it dissipated far too quickly for him to reap the benefits.

He didn't know what Drakkon's scientist had done with this technology, but it did give him an ability to drain and retain far more power than he ever had before. He'd been careful to keep himself out of view of the Rangers while he built up his power. He had already been beaten and humiliated more times than he cared to be. This time, he wanted to be ready, to be sure that his victory over the Rangers would be absolute.

He drained the battery completely, adding it to the power he'd already accumulated. It coursed through him into reserves, but it still energised and invigorated him. With every car he felt like he was one step closer to finally getting his vengeance. He and Cosmo would soon be the undisputed masters of media once Drakkon took over the world.

"Wrench, Wrench!" He heard a voice calling out. He turned around to see a Buzz-Cam behind him. He looked around to it, realising Cosmo was speaking to him. "How are things going down on Earth?"

"This new upgrade is almost everything Lord Drakkon promised." He told him.

"Almost?" He heard a chillingly familiar voice ask. If he had a spine, he was sure he'd feel a chill running down it. Drakkon! He was listening in! "Are you not satisfied with my generous gift?"

"That…that's…n…n…not what I meant sir!" Wrench stammered fearfully. "It's just…"

"Speak." Drakkon beckoned him.

"It's just…I'm noticing a certain…inefficiency in the power transfer." Wrench told him.

"Really?" Drakkon asked him. "What do you mean?"

"The energy I absorb…only about forty percent of it gets into my systems." Wrench explained. "My systems are showing that…"

"I'm perfectly certain you are aware there is a certain threshold for inefficiency in any technology." Drakkon told him.

"But…I don't even know where the energy goes." Wrench told him. "It's like it just…vanishes. That shouldn't be possible."

"If you'd like I can have the upgrade taken back and…"

"No, no…you're right." Wrench stammered.

"Wrench, have you defeated any Rangers yet?" Cosmo asked him.

"No, not yet." Wrench told him. "No one dies until the cameras start rolling."

"Good boy!" Cosmo stated. "When you feel you've built up enough power, let me know so I can start whipping up an audience."

Meanwhile, Joe and Calvin drove the truck up to the latest car on their call-out list. They found a rather agitated looking man waiting by his car.

"You took your time!" He said a little impatiently.

"Sorry, we've been getting a lot of calls…"

"Whatever!" The man replied, tossing his keys to Calvin. "Just get it fixed. I need to get to the office."

"Hey, wait, you can't just…"

"Deliver it to my home address afterwards!" The man said gruffly. "Not all of us can afford to wait around all day."

With that, he hailed a cab and left. Calvin just looked to Joe, who just shrugged.

"Do the honours will you?" He asked.

"Can we do that?" Calvin asked.

"Sure, we can. It's an extra charge, but sometimes we drop off vehicles." Joe told him as he went inside, triggering the latch for the hood. He turned the key in the ignition, but didn't get any response. "Alright, looks like another battery drain. You want to do the…"

Calvin saw a panicked look on Joe's face. He started to get out of the car slowly.

"Joe, what's going on?" Calvin asked. Joe just turned and ran. "Joe, where are you going? Joe?"

Just then, Calvin heard some heavy foot falls. He turned around just in time to see Wrench coming towards him. He was already too close for Calvin to try and block or dodge, all he could do was drop straight to the ground, narrowly avoiding being cut in half with Wrench's axe. It slammed into the car, sending it tumbling down the parking lot, smashing into the wall a long way off. He flicked back to his feet.

"You know, that belongs to one of my clients." Calvin told him, pointing to the car. Wrench turned towards him. "You…look different."

"I've had some upgrades!" Wrench told him. Calvin just laughed.

"What? Has Cosmo started a new show, pimp my failed flunkies?" Calvin asked him. Wrench started to flood his systems with power from his new harness. Calvin was barely able to avoid the next swipe. He activated his morpher as he rolled back to his feet a little way off. "OK, so it's more than just some alloys and a fancy new paint job. Good to know!"

Calvin rushed towards him, swinging his sword for him. However, it looked like his new upgrades hadn't just made Wrench stronger. They'd made him faster too, and his armour was heavier, with Calvin's blade barely able to get more than glancing blows that didn't even seem to scratch its surface. Wrench kicked him in the chest, knocking him high into the air, before he hit him with a huge swing of his axe, knocking him for a home run. Calvin coughed and spluttered as he started to get up. Wrench started to charge up a massive electrical attack that he cast Calvin's way. Calvin barely got out of the way in time, but even through the suit, he felt every hair standing on end. The charge had to be more than just lethal. It was enough to cook him alive in a flash.

"OK, that is DEFINITELY new!" Calvin stated. Wrench just started laughing.

"I've stolen enough power to flash fly you alive, even inside your little suit." Wrench told him. Calvin just started thinking.

"All those cars…You're the one that's been draining those batteries!" Calvin concluded.

"Well done Yellow Ranger!" Wrench told him. "I was just going to build up a little more of a charge before I took you down, but when I saw you turn up…how could I not take the opportunity to send the Pink Ranger a little message?"

"This again?" Calvin asked him. "Dude, you do realise she doesn't even give a shit about your little grudge, right? You're losing a grudge match only you're involved in!"

Wrench, enraged by hearing the same words he'd heard from the Purple Dino Charge Ranger a couple of years previously, cast another electricity blast straight at Calvin. He wasn't quick enough to avoid this one, and instead was punted straight through a wall, landing in a street a little way off. He was winded, and completely disorientated, but he was glad just to be alive. He saw Wrench coming towards him and got to his feet, snatching up his sword, before thinking through his options.

"Nope!" He declared, before turning tail and running for his life!

Over at the school, Victor was talking with Monty outside the front door. Although it was basically busy-work, they had been sent to mind the entrance for the students arriving. It wasn't particularly hard, all they needed to do was make sure those stopping in the drop-off zone moved on after dropping off and keep an eye on the parking lot to make sure no one was parking inconsiderately. It didn't take up too much of their thoughts, so it did allow them time to talk.

"So, you made a choice as to whether you want to go East Coast, West Coast or somewhere in between?" Victor asked. Monty had received offers of scholarships to numerous universities all across the country.

"I don't know, I mean…Cal Tech is great, but I've been living in California all my life, I think I might want to try somewhere else." Monty told him. "You know, actually see a bit of the world, maybe somewhere monsters aren't stomping on people's houses every other day?"

"I'd say that's a good thing to look for in a university." Victor agreed. "I've not yet heard from the police academy. I would have asked Trevor to put a word in for me but…well…"

"Look, I'm sure things will work out." Monty assured him. "Besides, if you don't get in, you can always go to college, try again afterwards."

"I don't know. I think I'm just about done with the academic route." Victor told him.

"No, I heard that the police department recruits college grads all the time." Monty assured him. "It might not be the worst idea."

"I don't know. I really don't want to move too far from mom." Victor sighed. "It's just been the two of us for so long, I don't think I like the idea of her being alone."

Just then, the school bus arrived and people started getting off. It struck Victor as odd that Hayley and Sarah were on the bus. Normally Sarah would ride her board to school, while Hayley generally rode with Calvin. He couldn't help staring as he saw them talking. Hayley seemed to be a little agitated, while Sarah was talking to her, looking a little sympathetic.

"What do you make of that Monty?" He asked. Monty saw where he was looking and smiled.

"Oh, I don't know." He said in response.

"I mean, I know Cal quit school but you'd think that he'd still drop Hayley off, right?" Victor asked him.

"Oh…Oh, right…of course, that's what I was thinking." Monty replied. Victor just looked to him.

"What are you talking about?" He asked.

"Well, I just thought that you were looking at something else." Monty responded with a little smirk. Victor just started stroking the bridge of his nose.

"Monty, will you quit that?" He asked.

"Quit what?" Monty asked innocently.

"You know damn well what!" Victor stated.

"I'm not doing anything!" Monty said innocently, before sliding away. Victor just groaned and shook his head. Looking back to Sarah and Hayley, he could see Hayley getting progressively more upset. He started to head over just as Hayley started to flail a little.

"Look, Hayley, I'm sure it's fine." Sarah tried to reassure her.

"But he always picks me up!" Hayley told her as she waved her phone around. "His phone's been off all morning!"

"Hayley, HAYLEY!" Sarah called after her as Hayley ran off. She ran a hand through her hair, looking worried as Victor arrived.

"Is everything alright?" He asked her. Sarah looked to him.

"Hayley's just upset. She thinks Calvin's mad at her." Sarah told him.

"Mad at her?" Victor asked her. "Why would he be mad at her?"

"Well, she…um…" Sarah started to say, before realising she was talking to Victor. "Um…you know what? It's personal…"

"Fine, then we don't talk about that." Victor assured her, holding up his hands. "How about you? How are you?"

"I'm…I'm OK I guess." She told him. "I really wish I could be more help though."

"Look, Hayley and Calvin are rock-solid." Victor assured her. "If we're not seeing them walk up the aisle within a couple of years I will…I'll eat one of Monty's lunches. That's how confident I am."

"Normally I'd agree, but Hayley's really upset." Sarah told him. "Look, I…I really don't feel right talking to you about this, do you mind…?"

"Of course." Victor said with a sigh, trying to think of something else to talk to her about. He hated to see Sarah so upset. He only knew a little bit of the kind of terrible responsibility she and her friends carried with them. Being one of the few people who knew their secret, but wasn't part of it, he often felt like a helpless spectator. At times like now, he just saw her looking so weary, so weighed down, far more than any person of any age should be. It was one of the things he admired about her, and also one of the things that killed him any time he saw her looking so down, so weighted by her troubles. He wished there was something he could do to make it easier for her. Just then, he heard her communicator bleep. She answered it, knowing it was safe to do so in front of Sarah.

"Guys, I need help!" Calvin called through his communicator.

"Cal?" Sarah asked. "What's going on?"

"Your old buddy Wrench just showed up, and he is sporting some serious hardware!" He told her. "Mick was right, there is a pattern! Wrench is sucking power out of car batteries and its giving him a serious power boost!"

"OK, we'll be there as fast as we can." Brody told him from another line.

"Bring some firepower!" Calvin implored them. "Preferably before he cuts me in half!"

In his dimension, Drakkon was watching the battle between Wrench and Calvin. His fingers drummed on the edges of the arm rests on his throne as he watched.

"Things are going precisely as planned." One of his followers said from the shadows. Drakkon just continued to watch, unblinking.

"Your device appears to be giving him the power you promised." Drakkon stated. "But he was a lot closer to figuring out our true plan than I'd have liked."

"How so?" His follower asked. Drakkon looked towards the follower.

"He asked about the additional energy." Drakkon reminded him. "He knew something wasn't right."

"He's a simpleton." The follower assured him.

"He figured out he wasn't getting all the power from the device." Drakkon reminded him. "I really do hope you're not slipping in your old age. I value your intelligence, not your sparkling wit."

"He knows nothing." The follower assured him. "And by the time anyone figures out your true plan, it'll be far too late."

"It better be." Drakkon assured him. "I've waited far too long to be denied now."

Back on Earth, Calvin was doing his best not to be carved to pieces by Wrench as he came after him. He was starting to tire, and knew that if his friends didn't arrive soon, he was toast. He could only hope they'd get there soon.

He was relieved when he heard something from up above. He was half-expecting the team to arrive by their bikes, but he was pleasantly surprised they took him seriously about how urgent his need for help was. They'd taken the Lion Fire Ship, coming in by air. Shots rained down around Wrench as ship flew overhead. Wrench was staggered, and some of his systems started to spark worryingly, but by the time he got to his knees, he fired back a massive jolt of power that knocked the Lion Fire Ship out of the sky. Calvin could only watch as the team bailed out, joining him on the ground.

"I see what you mean about the upgrades." Preston commented. "He isn't even gigantified."

"Wow, chrome AND gold?" Sandy asked. "He does not believe in subtle, does he?"

"What's the point in having a high-performance machine and then skimp on the finish?" Wrench asked, taunting her. "Now, time to light you up!"

He tried to power up for another blast, but all that he got was sparks from his hands that fell far short of the Rangers. He tried again, but with little effect.

"Guys, he's been taking the power from car batteries, charging himself up." Calvin reminded them. "I think he must have used up most of it on the Lion Fire Ship!"

"Then we need to take him down before he gets a chance to recharge." Brody called out as they summoned their morphers, but before they could fire, Wrench disappeared in a bright flash of light. Brody threw down his morpher in a fit of temper.

"Damn it!" He yelled. "He got away!"

"Oh, this is not good." Sarah stated as she started pacing. "Wrench was a coward before, but with that new body, all he needs is to charge up enough power."

"He's going to have to find it first." Calvin reminded them as he de-morphed. "The first cars were getting reported a couple of days ago at least. It'll take him a while to build up anything like that amount of power again."

"We need to find the Lion Fire Ship and repair it." Brody told them. "Calvin, do you think you can…?"

Just then, Calvin's cell phone rang. He looked to it, seeing the caller ID.

"Joe?" He asked.

"Calvin, thank God you're alright!" Joe exclaimed. "I was hoping you got away from that…that thing!"

"Yeah, I managed to get out." Calvin told him. "I had to leave the truck…"

"Forget about the bloody truck, I can get another truck!" Joe interrupted him sharply. "Look, can you meet me back at the parking lot? I just want to make sure you're OK. I don't want to be the first mechanic who has to call an employee's next of kin."

"Sure, thing Joe." Calvin answered. "I'll meet you back at the parking lot. Hopefully if we're quick we can get there before anyone runs off with the tools."

As he hung up, he looked to the team regretfully. He wanted to go and help them, particularly now they knew one of the Zords had been damaged, but if he didn't show up, Joe would only worry where he had got to. Brody just nodded.

"We understand. Go." Brody told him. Calvin just smiled.

"Thanks." He told them. "I'll be there if you need me."

With that, he ran off. Brody got onto his communicator.

"Mick, can you get a fix on the location of the Lion Fire Ship?" He asked.

"Sure thing." He told him. "I'll have it up and running in no time."

Calvin arrived back at the parking lot, finding Joe was pacing, talking on his cell phone.

"Look, I don't like playing this game." He said to the person on the other end. "Maybe we should…OK, I have to go. Calvin! So good to see you're alright!"

"Yeah, I am." Calvin told him. "That thing was pretty scary right?"

"You kidding? I think I was about three blocks away before I realised, we got separated!" Joe told him. "Well, the good news is, the truck and the tools are alright. Bad news is the client's car is a write-off."

"Yeah, I'm not looking forward to making that call." Calvin told him. Joe just smiled.

"Don't worry, that's my responsibility." Joe told him, handing him the keys. "So, how about you take us somewhere for lunch, your choice, and I call the client."

"Are you sure?" Calvin asked.

"Hey, I've managed to almost get you killed on your second day." He reminded him. "I figure the least I can do is get lunch."

With that, Calvin started up the truck. Joe dialled the phone.

"Hello, Mr Edwards?" He began. "I've got some bad news I'm afraid."


	25. High Voltage

Calvin and Joe carried on with a very busy day of repairs. Joe was as happy as a pig in muck that there were so many clients. Calvin now knew what was causing all the electrical faults with the cars they were fixing. Wrench with his new upgrades was draining all the car batteries he could find in order to power up his abilities. He was by far more powerful than they could ever remember from their previous encounters, but it looked like his new high-voltage attacks depleted that power every time he used them.

They had lucked out that he fled the battle once he realised he had almost exhausted the power from his new weapons. He was pretty close to having them on the ropes, but his over-eagerness to finish the battle had caused him to waste a lot of his power.

"Cal!" Joe called out. Calvin just looked to him. "You still with me buddy?"

"Yeah, it's just..." Calvin started to say, before stopping himself. He was about to tell Joe that he knew what was causing the problems with the cars, but then he wondered, if he did tell him, how would he explain how he knew? He thought about it for a moment, but ended up thinking better of it. Joe just smiled.

"Let me guess, the folks aren't too thrilled with you taking this gig." Joe asked him. Calvin just sighed and nodded.

"They know I've always wanted to be a mechanic." Calvin grumbled. "Why can't they just be happy for me?"

"You know, I've kind of got this theory that all parents are meant to be at least a little disappointed with their kids, and all kids are meant to be at least a little embarrassed by their parents." Joe told him. "It's like...my dad. He was some big-time general. He wanted me to go into the forces too. Kept telling me how many generations of my family had been in uniform. But it just didn't do it for me."

"Your dad didn't like that?" Calvin asked him. Joe laughed.

"Not one little bit!" He assured him. "Even when I was dead set on being a mechanic he kept telling me that there are all sorts of vehicles and weapons that need maintained in the forces, but the thought of being told where to go, how to dress, how to style my hair and beard? It just wasn't for me. When I told him I wasn't signing up he all but disowned me, but a few years later, once I had my first business..."

"He accepted you'd made the right call?" Calvin asked him. Joe just laughed out loud.

"You kidding?" He asked. "No, he didn't accept it. I still don't think he does, but when we got together for the holidays, he actually talked to me. Sure it was awkward, and I've had longer conversations with my dentist, but...he talked to me, so it seems like he respects the fact that I was my own man, made my own life."

"That story really isn't that reassuring." Calvin told him. Joe just shrugged.

"What can I say? I fix cars better than I fix families." Joe told him.

"I just wish dad would see that I just want to do my own thing, make my own life." Calvin explained. "I was hoping that after I had a few paychecks under my belt and we knew where Hayley was going to college I could start looking for a place for us."

He sighed and shook his head.

"What?" Joe asked him.

"It's just...Hayley." He admitted. "I mean...she called my folks. She was the one that told them."

"Yikes." Joe said, sucking his teeth. "I mean, maybe she thought she was doing what was best?"

"By going behind my back?" Calvin asked him. "She didn't even talk to me about this; she just went to my parents. It was my news to tell them."

"Were you going to?" Joe asked.

"I mean...eventually, I guess." Calvin said.

"Hold up, it looks like our next job up ahead." Joe said as he pulled up. "Now that, that's one of those new foreign models...you want to try your hand at this one?"

"You serious?" Calvin asked him with a huge grin on his face. "I've only even seen one through the window of the showroom! You want to let me...?"

"Learn by doing right?" Joe asked him. "You go ahead, you know where I am if you need a hand. I just want to write up some more invoices."

Calvin got out of the truck, grabbing his toolbox and ran over.

"Joe's towing, what seems to be the trouble?" Calvin asked him.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Wrench was checking on his systems following his battle with the Rangers. He didn't have much in the way of repairs to do, but he was still a little put out by the fact that he had to retreat. He'd unfortunately drained the power from his new upgrades rather quickly once he had gotten going, letting his eagerness to even scores get the better of him.

Cosmo came into his lab, finding Wrench doing some diagnostics on his systems.

"I have to say, I like this new you Wrench." Cosmo complimented him. "Drakkon really seems to have come through with this."

"Yeah...it seems that way." Wrench answered.

"You...don't sound too convinced." Cosmo answered. Wrench just gestured to the readouts.

"I exhausted my power banks far too quickly. Charging up from car batteries is taking way too long!" Wrench complained. "Plus, I've found this thing here. I told you I was only getting about forty percent of the power I'd been draining, the rest of it seems to be going here, but I have no idea what this is!"

"Does it matter?" Cosmo asked. "We are talking about extra-dimensional technology. It might not work the same way as devices you're used to."

"It's in MY body!" Wrench reminded him. Cosmo just nodded.

"Well...yes, I can see why you might want answers about that." Cosmo said, stroking his chin. "Still, in the meantime do you have any ideas how you're going to recharge all that energy you used on the Rangers?"

"It took me a few days draining batteries to get that power, and I burned through it in a few minutes."

"So, what you're saying is you need a larger power source." Cosmo said with a wicked smirk. "Wrench, my boy...I think I may have an idea."

Back at the school, the kids were just starting to break for lunch. Hayley was sitting at a table desperately trying to call Calvin, but his phone was still off.

"Still no joy, huh?" Sarah asked. She just shook her head.

"I know he's working, but he's not even calling back from the voicemails and texts I've left." Hayley told her. "He didn't even stick around after the battle. This is the longest we've not talked about anything."

"Now, that's couple goals right there." Brody chuckled, shovelling some pasta into his mouth.

"I'm serious, it's like...I'm really worried." Hayley admitted. "Normally he talks to me about stuff, but this? I get he's angry, but he's not snapping at me, he's not giving me snippy comments...hell, I'd take screaming right now just to know how he feels about..."

"About the job?" Preston asked her. Hayley just looked to him sadly.

"About us." Hayley admitted. "You guys think I did the right thing, don't you?"

"Um..."

"Well..."

"Uh..."

Hayley couldn't help noticing her friends weren't exactly quick to take her side. She was a little unsure herself if she had done the right thing getting Calvin's parents involved. She knew they'd have to figure it out eventually, if nothing else Calvin would have to explain in a couple of months why he wasn't getting his diploma or forms for his graduation gown. It wasn't like it was going to be long before they heard anyway, even if he didn't tell them as he said he was planning to, but by going over his head, she felt a little like she'd taken something from him, even though she just hoped they would make him see that it was only a couple more months before he could go work for Joe or anyone else he damn well wanted. Just then, their communicators bleeped.

"You're go for Brody." Brody told him.

"Guys, the Lion Fire Ship is almost back up and running." Mick told them.

"Good, that's one thing at least." Brody answered. "Thanks Mick."

"So?" Hayley asked. The others just continued to look around each other, until the school bell rang. They scampered off so quickly that Preston was tripping over his own feet most of the way down the hall and she was only a little surprised she wasn't seeing Ranger-shaped clouds of dust where they had been sitting. She just gathered up her bag and started to head towards class.

Elsewhere in the city, Calvin and Joe were having some lunch. Calvin was just staring at his phone.

"You thinking of calling her?" He asked.

"Not sure if I should." Calvin replied. "I mean, she's the one that has to apologise right? If I call..."

"Kind of hard for her to call if your phone's off." Joe pointed out.

"I'm working." Calvin reminded him. Joe just chuckled.

"This ain't exactly an office environment my friend." Joe told him. "As long as you're not spending all day whispering sweet nothings do I look like the kind of guy that cares?"

Calvin was considering turning on his phone when he noticed a sign ahead. It was advertising an apartment for let above the stores.

"Hey, check that out." Calvin told him. Joe just looked at the sign. "The garage is only a couple of blocks from here, that'd be ideal."

"You're serious about this aren't you?" Joe asked.

"You mind if I check it out?" Calvin asked him. Joe just gestured to him to go.

"I'm turning the phone back on in fifteen." Joe told him. "You have until then."

Calvin ran over and started looking around for the apartment. He headed up the stairs around back and headed along. There was a small parking lot at the back; at least...that's what it looked like it was MEANT to be. It was an overgrown lot with no tarmac that seemed to hold all the dumpsters from the shops and had a couple of cars parked. He started looking for the apartment, finding the number. He knocked on the door, hoping someone was in.

"Can I help you?" He heard someone say behind him. He almost jumped out of his skin. He turned around, seeing an old lady, about half his height, with a floral dress that looked like it was made from curtains and sharply angled glasses. She had thin, white hair.

"You frightened me!" He admitted. "Um...I was hoping to have a look at the apartment."

"Really?" She asked, looking him up and down a little judgementally. Calvin could tell she was trying to size him up. He was young to be a potential tenant, and she was no doubt trying to figure out if he'd even be able to afford it.

"Can I take a look inside?" He asked her. She got out the key and turned it, opening the door. Calvin looked around the apartment.

"Wow, it's...um..." He didn't want to say anything negative. He knew he wasn't going to be looking for anything huge, especially early on. He didn't need anything big, it wasn't like he was looking at a family any time soon. Just as well, he'd seen bigger closets once the furniture was taken into account. There was a counter, cooker, fridge and sink at one end, which he assumed passed for the kitchen, and there was a sofa and a chest of drawers on which a television was perched.

"Bathroom's in there." She told him, pointing to a door a little way off. "Trash pickup is on Friday."

"Where...uh...where's the bedroom?" Calvin asked her. She just pointed to the sofa.

"It pulls out." She told him.

"So...this is...the whole apartment?" He asked her. She just glared at him. He took a deep breath, trying to manage his expectations. He was just getting his first foot on the ladder. The odds were he'd only be here for a couple of years tops. He could put up with it for that long. It wasn't THAT bad, it was bigger than his bedroom at least.

"OK, so, let's talk turkey." He stated.

"Four hundred and fifty dollars." She said in an off-hand way. "Plus utilities."

"OK, well, it's a little steeper than I thought." Calvin said as he considered it. "But...I think I should be able to manage four hundred and fifty a month..."

He looked around as he heard the old lady cackling. She laughed so hard she broke into a hacking cough. He just looked to her.

"Are you alright?" He asked her.

"Four hundred and fifty a month?" She asked him. "That's a week!"

"FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY A WEEK?" Calvin yelled, his eyes almost popping out of his head. He started pacing, running his hand through his hair. "Um...look, I've only had this job a couple of days, I haven't even got my first check yet. Can I think about this for a bit?"

"Suit yourself!" She replied, shooing him out the door. "When it's gone it's gone!"

Calvin started walking away, thinking about the apartment. He didn't claim to know much about property. He always knew people complained about how expensive it was. He never expected it to be cheap, but four hundred and fifty dollars a week? And what was it she said, something about utilities? That was separate? He'd have to pay extra for electricity? He knew his parents got electricity bills, but they'd bought the house. He thought rental properties got it as part of the package didn't they?

He got down to the parking lot, finding Joe wasn't by the truck. He started looking around.

"Joe?" He called out. "Joe?"

"Hey, Cal!" He called out. Calvin jumped as he turned around, finding Joe right behind him. "Hey, you think you should cut down on the caffeine a little?"

"Maybe." Calvin answered. "Where...?"

"Oh, I was just taking a whizz." He told him. He saw Calvin looking to the apartment block thoughtfully. "So, how did it go?"

"It's a little pricier than I'd have thought." Calvin admitted. "Speaking of which, can we talk?"

"You want to talk numbers?" Joe asked him. "Cal, we've got a lot of jobs on..."

"Yeah, I totally get that, I do, but...I think if I'm going to be looking I at least need to know what kind of thing I can look at." Calvin told him. Joe just smiled.

"OK, I'll tell you what, after the shift I'll take you to the shop and we can talk numbers." Joe told him. "Maybe even start thrashing out details of a contract? What do you say?"

"I'd appreciate that." Calvin said with a smile.

"So, do I turn the phone back on?" Joe asked, gesturing to his phone.

"Go ahead." Calvin replied. Joe turned it on, at which it immediately started ringing.

"Joe's towing?" He answered. "The Sean Johnson Turnpike? Yeah, we can be there in about five."

Elsewhere in the city, over at a power plant, workers were busy hard at work when Wrench teleported in. As soon as they saw him, they started screaming and ran for their lives.

"Wrench, how are things going down there?" Cosmo asked over his communicator.

"Just as we expected." Wrench told him as he looked to some security guards, who took one look at him, before throwing away their guns and running away, thinking better of it. "Resistance is non-existent."

"I thought as much." Cosmo said with a smile. "Now, get to work before the Rangers show up! There's no way your arrival hasn't caused some noise."

"I'm sure it has." Wrench replied as he sliced his way through a fence, heading in among the towers. "But by the time they get here, I'll have a shocking surprise for them!"

He rammed his claw into one of the tower, and started to siphon off the power, recharging his upgrades. Before, he'd tried to get the power subtly, but now that the Rangers knew of his new weapons, time was a factor. He felt energy coursing through him and sparks flew as he channelled it into himself. Soon he'd take care of the Rangers, and then when he had, maybe he'd pay a little visit to an old rival in Amber Beach!

At the school, the Rangers were in Levi's music class, working through his lesson. Levi was holding his guitar and explaining what he wanted them to do.

"OK, so remember, you're watching me, keeping to the beat and a one, a two, a one, two three!"

He strummed the strings of his guitar, but only a pathetic twang came from the guitar. The lights flickered and the students started to look around in alarm. Levi tried to maintain an air of calm.

"It's OK, it's OK..." He assured them, at which the lights went out altogether. He took off his guitar and put it aside as he went to his desk, finding his computer was off. There was a knock on the door and Mrs Finch came in.

"Mr Weston, is everything alright in here?" She asked.

"Uh...I think I might have tripped a breaker..."

"If you have then you've managed to trip all the breakers in the school." She told him. "The power's out in the whole building!"

He went to the door, looking down the hall, seeing only the emergency strips showing the way to the exits were on. Students and teachers were starting to spill out into the hall, looking for an explanation.

"Mr Weston?" Victor called from the window. "You might want to see this!"

Everyone ran over to the window, looking out to see that for several blocks all the power was out.

"I've heard of someone blowing the roof of a venue, but I doubt even you could blow the whole grid with your guitar."

He looked over to his computer.

"Aw man, I was downloading some tunes!" He complained. "OK, uh...don't panic. There's only a little time left in class anyway, so...everyone just file safely out into the yard, then once Principal Hastings has taken a roll call, you can all head home. Study this piece; we'll pick it up next time."

As the class started to get their stuff and file out, the Rangers all gathered around Levi.

"OK, who thinks that it's way too much of a coincidence that Wrench is still on the loose with his power drain upgrades and now the local grid is down?" Sandy asked.

"He powered up with only a few batteries before." Preston said, sounding worried. "If he's plugged himself into the power grid..."

"Then we have to shut him down." Brody replied, at which they all ran out of the classroom.


	26. Sparks Flying

Calvin closed the hood of the latest car he had finished fixing, another dead battery, and smiled as he looked to the man in the driver's seat.

"Alright, that's you." Calvin told him. "Now, I've just given you a jump, so the battery's still kind of low. I'd recommend you run it around a little bit, or if you have a charger at home you…"

"That's fine." The man snapped at him. "I'm already late for work."

"I was just going to say if you just do this you shouldn't need to call us…" He didn't get a chance to finish as the guy just drove off. "…yeah, you're welcome!"

"It's always great when you get the grateful ones." Joe said with a smile. "The ones that are assholes? Not so much."

"Looking at the car he's driving you'd think he could afford some manners." Calvin grumbled. "A thank you would be nice, jerk!"

"Don't worry, we'll get the 'thank you' when his callout insurance gets our bill." Joe told him, clapping Calvin on the shoulder. The Yellow Ranger just frowned a little. He could understand wanting to get back at the guy for being rude, and given what he'd heard from the lady letting the apartment he could understand the desire to get a little bit more money, but he couldn't help thinking about the invoiced he'd seen Joe printing up. They had extras on them that they didn't actually provide. They deserved the callout fee, but they didn't use any parts and were barely at the scene more than a few minutes. Joe assured him they were billing insurance companies and not the clients directly but it still did feel a little dishonest.

"So, Cal, we haven't had a call in a while." Joe pointed out. "You want to head back to the shop and talk about your contract?"

"Would I?" Calvin asked him. Unfortunately, just then, his communicator bleeped. Calvin had turned his phone off, but even now he didn't turn off his communicator. He'd always figured given the call-out nature of most of Joe's business he would be able to slip away. He looked to Joe, putting his hand over his communicator. "Uh…Joe, I really want to but…"

"What is it?" Joe asked him.

"It's a…medical emergency." Calvin said, trying to come up with an explanation for why he needed to leave. "It's…kind of like a pager. I have this…aunt and she's got this condition and…I really need to…"

"Hey, no problem. I appreciate a young man that can prioritise his responsibilities." Joe told him. "How about you go help your…aunt…and I'll crunch some numbers at the garage and figure out a fair contract for you. I should hopefully have it ready for you to go over when you get back."

"That's great Joe, thanks!" Calvin rushed out as he started to run off. Joe got into the truck and drove away, heading back towards the shop.

Over by the power plant, the rest of the team arrived to find alarms blaring. The staff had already fled, and there were emergency signals flickering all over the place.

"OK, so we've got the right place." Brody commented.

"I really don't think there was much doubt about that." Sarah replied. "So…um…the next question is, where exactly do we find Wrench?"

"Somehow I doubt that's going to be much of a problem." Brody answered. "If he's making this much noise, I really don't think he's trying to be subtle."

Just then, all of them felt something building in the air. Even through their suits they could feel the charge in the air building to the point that their hair was standing up. The suits protected them, but even they had their limits. If they could already feel it, none of them wanted to test out exactly how much the suits would stand up to a direct blast.

"Everyone, defensive perimeter!" Brody ordered. "I want eyes at twelve, three, six and nine. Levi, you and Preston…"

"He's above us!" Levi yelled, just in time as he leapt from the top of a tower, bringing his axe down. The team dove in all directions for their lives, barely getting out the way. As well as the force of the blow, the discharge as he grounded caused a blast so intense that the ground charred for about twenty feet in all directions around him.

Even after his initial discharge, Wrench had so much energy charging through him that he was positively crackling. Sparks arced around him and he was almost glowing as he got back to his feet, yanking his axe out of the ground.

"Darn, you missed them!" Tynamonn whined as he stepped into view. "I thought you were going to…"

"Shut up Tynamonn, this is my fight, not yours!" Wrench snapped at him. "If I'd wanted to vaporise them in one hit, I'd have done it, but where would be the satisfaction in that?"

He started to turn this way and that, looking around at the Rangers as they started to get up. He started twirling his axe as he waited for them to get up and ready to come for him again.

"Pink Ranger, there you are, I was hoping I'd see you again." Wrench taunted her, looking to her. "I bet you had a really good laugh at me all those times I was defeated…"

"Actually…I really didn't give you much thought at all." Sarah answered. Wrench just shook his head.

"You…you didn't…" He started to stammer. "I can't believe…!"

"Look, Wrench, I'm flattered, really I am." Sarah said, putting a hand over her heart. "But I just don't feel the same way you do. You see, I've got all sorts of psychopaths, freaks, mutants, aliens and inter-dimensional warlords after me."

The rest of the team started to snigger as she goaded him.

"Look, you were part of my past, and I'm not going to say that having you try to kill me every other day wasn't a part of my life, but I've just moved on." She told him. "But I really hope you can too…"

Wrench let out a horrendous scream and brought his axe down again, unleashing a bold of electricity straight for Sarah. She dove out the way just in time, but as it hit a power conduit, it blew it out. The team all dove for cover as he started sending out power blasts in all directions.

"OK, Sarah, as amusing as that was…can we kindly NOT piss off the walking battery trying to turn us into lightning rods?" Hayley asked her.

"Wrench, control yourself!" Tynamonn yelled. "Remember what happened last time! Don't waste all your energy trying to take them out in one hit!"

"OK, he's doing well enough without the cheer squad!" Levi called back. He opened fire with his Rockstorm Blaster, scoring some seemingly inconsequential hits. "OK, I really think we're going to need something with a little more kick than this."

"Wrench, they're going to try one of their power-ups!" Tynamonn yelled at him. "Look out for…"

"Would someone please shut up the garden gnome?" Brody asked.

"With pleasure!" Calvin called out as he arrived on the scene, attacking Tynamonn.

"Guys, I have an idea." Sarah told them. "I'll be right back!"

As she ran off, Hayley joined Calvin in his battle with Tynamonn, leaving the others to face Wrench.

"OK, whatever Sarah's got planned, we've got to give her time." Brody stated. "Let's just hope we don't get cooked in the meantime."

Up on the Warrior Dome, Cosmo was practically salivating at the thought of his viewing figures. Wrench had returned with a grudge match, something which was already a draw, but the Rangers now had a winning streak so long that it was going to be huge watching anyone break it. Now, he felt like he finally had the warrior that was fit to take the Rangers down.

It was always a balancing act with his fighters. Victorious and dominant fighters were popular, but there came a point at which they became too dominant, and people started to become bored with their matches. No one wanted to watch a show where they could tell what was going to happen before they even tuned in, and at some point in every victory streak, there came a point where viewing figures started to go down because people were simply fed up seeing the same fighters winning week after week. The trick was to protect the popular acts just long enough that people still wanted to see them fight, but finally see the streak end before everyone found something else to watch."

"Oooh, that one's got to hurt! I'll bet the Blue Ranger's going to have a spiked hair do for a while after that one!" Cosmo chortled as he gestured to the screen. He kept his eyes on the action. "It looks like one Ranger's already decided to abandon the fight. I guess even our heroes have a point where self-preservation kicks in."

Back down on Earth, Hayley and Calvin were going after Tynamonn, keeping him out of the fight with the others.

Hayley was a little distracted during the battle. This was the closest she'd been to Calvin in a couple of days now. He still wasn't answering her calls or texts. Even though they'd fought alongside each other now that they could tell what each other was going to do without needing to speak, she wished she could hear his voice, even if it was just to call out what he was doing.

Calvin managed to knock Tynamonn's staff aside, leaving him open. Hayley came in over the top and brought her sword down, straight into his face. However, even though she got in a solid hit, he didn't seem to be phased at all. He didn't even flinch. Instead, he grabbed her, tossing her through the air. Calvin caught her, spinning her back onto her feet, just as they both drew their blasters and opened fire on him.

"This guy is just freaky tough!" Hayley commented. "I mean, I know he's wearing a face mask, but you'd think hitting him in the face would get some kind of reaction from him."

Tynamonn spun his staff around, coming through between them, knocking them both down.

"Ha, not bad for a garden gnome eh?" He asked. "Who knows, when I'm finished here, I may just go fishing using your guts as bait."

"Well, that's…colourful." Calvin commented as they both kipped back up to their feet, pulling out their morphers and converting them into claw mode.

Elsewhere in the complex, Brody and the others were keeping up their tactics of hit and run with Wrench. It was a little difficult to get close to him, much less cause any real damage to him, but they had already seen that his upgrades used up power at a tremendous rate as he attacked with his strongest attack. He was angry enough with the team that he was throwing it all their way. Levi managed to clip his knee, forcing him to kneel while Preston ran up, planting a foot on his other knee and kicked his head as hard as he could.

"Now that's what I call kick the can!" Preston stated. Wrench could see that they could now get a lot closer to him and reached out, driving his hand into some machinery. They all started to back up.

"Great, no matter how much juice he uses up, while he's here he has as many recharges as he wants!" Brody concluded. Just then, there was a massive explosion and every light in the area suddenly went dark. A couple of the towers fell in on themselves with a massive crash and a huge hole opened up in the ground. Sarah leapt up from underneath.

"Sarah?" Preston asked.

"I figured there wasn't much point carrying on the fight if Wrench could plug in whenever he felt like it." She told them. "Now he's down to a single charge."

"So you took out the whole plant?" Preston shrieked.

"Uh…problem for later?" She asked sheepishly. "Let's put it this way, if we didn't have secret identities, I'd be on the hook for a HELL of a lot of damages right now!"

"Alright, I'd love to say we weren't that desperate, but we really kind of were." Brody conceded as he dodged one of Wrench's bolts, feeling his muscles contracting just being so close to such a huge current. He didn't want to think what might have happened if it had hit him. "That's going to have to be the city's problem. Right now, we've got him to deal with."

Over in his dimension, Drakkon was watching the battle with interest. He really didn't care if Wrench won or lost, but he did have a vested interest in the result.

"How are things looking there?" He asked one of his followers.

"Everything's going exactly as we planned." His lieutenant said proudly. "It's a shame about Wrench, but…you know what they say about omelettes and eggs."

"Yes, I've broken quite a few myself." Drakkon told him. "Ready the others. Our time will soon be at hand."

Back on Earth, Calvin and Hayley were blasted back into the main area as Tynamonn followed them, joining Wrench. They both stood before the Rangers.

"You're all looking a little frazzled." Tynamonn teased them.

"At least he didn't make a 'shocking' joke." Preston grumbled.

"I am so done with these guys!" Calvin snapped as he summoned the Lion Fire Armour Star. "Lion Fire Armour mode, POWER UP!"

He rushed towards Wrench, the armour forming up around him as Wrench hit him with his blast. Calvin powered through as electricity splashed off him. He could hear his communicator bleeping, warning him that even armoured, his suit was fast approaching the danger zone. He managed to get to Wrench, the sword blazing with power as he brought it down. The power generated by both of them blew them apart, sending everyone sprawling. Calvin de-morphed as he finally came to rest.

"He's down!" Brody yelled. "Come on, pile it on, now!"

The rest of them rushed for him, but Wrench, depleted as he was, had held just enough back to fight back. In turn, he blocked their weary attacks, cutting them down as he came for them. Sandy was the last one left, and she could see him turning his attention towards Preston.

She ran for him, hacking into him wildly, knocking the axe from his hand, before he managed to grab onto her. He caught her in a tight bear-hug, trying to squeeze the life from her.

Sandy could feel herself getting crushed, and started to hear cracking. She didn't know if it was coming from her back or her ribs, but she knew that pretty soon, it was going to be a moot point either way. That was when green lightning started to flare up around her. She still didn't really understand what Psycho Green's power really did, but she did know it was powerful. Letting out a massive scream, there was a huge green flash, at which they both parted. Wrench was blown away, imbedding into a wall a little way off. Sandy fell to her knees and de-morphed as the others looked to her.

"I have no idea what that is, but it couldn't have come at a better…"

"Uh…Presto?" Hayley asked. "I think you might want to hold off on that thought."

They all watched in horror as Wrench started to pull himself out of the rubble, once again crackling with electricity, this time green in colour. They all gulped.

"Sandy, get out of there!" Brody yelled at her.

"Brody, I really think now would be a good time for…"

"You read my mind." Brody interrupted Hayley, producing some smoke bombs. By the time the smoke was clear, the Rangers were gone. Wrench just looked to his hands.

"Those cowards, they got away!" Tynamonn complained. He saw Wrench continuing to stare at his hands. "What is it?"

"I don't know, but…but just a few seconds holding the Green Ranger almost charged me as much as this whole power plant!" Wrench told him. "If we could get a hold of her…"

"Then there'd be no stopping you." Tynamonn concluded. "Come on Wrench, let's go. Let the Rangers lick their wounds for now. In the meantime, we'll figure out how to get you all the power you'll ever need!"

Back at the Ranger Base, Emma and Mick were breaking out the first-aid kit once again, helping the Rangers with their latest injuries.

"Do you think we could register for a tax-break for all these supplies?" Sarah asked, looking to their seriously depleted first-aid supplies. They'd used it plenty, but unfortunately it had been a while since anyone had a chance to re-stock it. "I mean, technically we could list it as a business expense right?"

"Then we'd have to tell someone who we are." Preston reminded her. "And since you just blew up several million dollars' worth of power plant…"

"Right…gotcha." Sarah replied, snapping her fingers.

"Well, if there's one good thing to come out of this, it's that school's officially going to be closed until the city gets the power grid back up and running." Mick told them. "They're going to have to re-route some power from other areas, but it's going to take a while."

"Until then, the only people that'll be happy are stores that sell candles and camping stoves." Levi stated.

"I'm really sorry guys." Sandy said, shaking her head. "I…I still don't know how I did that, I didn't mean…"

"It's OK, we know you don't really know how this works or what it is." Preston assured her.

"That's sweet of you to say, but you aren't the one that just discovered you're basically a living, breathing dose of PCP for the latest bad guy." She replied, looking around. "If you all want me to sit out the rest of this one, I'll understand."

"As loathe as I am to cut our numbers, I think for now that might be the best choice." Brody agreed. He could tell the others were a little troubled by the fact he had agreed to this. "Look, I don't mean it in a bad way, but unless she can control her power flare ups, potentially all she'll do is act as a walking battery pack for Wrench."

"We can always call on you if we need you." Levi told her.

"So, what now?" Sarah asked.

"Well, for now, we don't have much choice but to go home." Brody told them. "The city's in complete brown out. Our families will only worry if we don't put in an appearance at home."

"You guys go ahead." Calvin stated. "I just need to go speak to Joe at the shop."

As he was heading out, Hayley approached him, grabbing his arm.

"Cal." She said, before pulling him aside. "Do you really need to run off?"

"The rest of you might be lucky enough that school is closed, but some of us have jobs you know." Calvin told her. She just sighed.

"Cal, you've not spoken to me in a couple of days." She reminded him. "I've called and texted…you've not responded to any of them."

"Yeah, well, I guess I've been busy." Calvin replied.

"Busy?" She asked him. "Too busy, even for me?"

"Hayley, not everything is about you…"

"I never meant that!" She rushed out. "Cal, I know you're mad at me but…"

"Mad?" He asked derisively. "Hayls, I was mad at you when you got my favourite CD scratched up taking it out of the CD player in the truck. I am…beyond angry with you right now."

"Cal, I only did what I thought was best…"

"By going behind my back?" Calvin asked her. "You told on me to my parents? Like I'm a kid?"

"Cal, that's not what I meant…"

"But it's what it felt like!" Calvin told her. "I wanted to tell my parents in my own time, in my own way, but you took that from me. You didn't even talk to me!"

"Well, it's not like you talked to me about making this huge decision either!" Hayley protested.

"Hayley, I didn't make this decision just for me, I made it for both of us!" Calvin told her. "I mean, pretty soon you'll be at college, and I thought it might be nice if at least one of us was earning a living. Maybe even be able to afford a place without both of us ending up paying off huge debts for the rest of our lives."

"Cal…"

"The thing is, you didn't even talk to me before you did it." Calvin interrupted her. "It was my decision to make, but you couldn't just accept that maybe, just maybe I might know what I want. Do you have any idea how humiliating that is? I know I'm not the smartest guy, or the best looking or the richest, but I thought at least you respected me for knowing what I want."

"Cal, I do respect you." She tried to reassure him.

"Well, it doesn't feel like it." He told her. "And if I was wrong about that, it makes me wonder what else I was wrong about."

"What are you saying?" She asked him, her heart starting to feel heavy in her chest. The very words she feared were about to come out, hitting her like a sledgehammer.

"I'm saying, maybe we aren't as right for each other as I thought." He told her.

"Cal, wait!" She called out as he stormed out of the base. "CAL!"

Sarah grabbed her, hugging her tightly as she wept. The others just stared on, none of them knowing what to do.

Meanwhile, out in the hall, just outside the base, Calvin looked to the door, tears beginning to well up in him. Hayley had been a huge part of his life, she'd been most sure of out of anything. A large part of him wanted to go back in, to beg her to forgive him, but he was still furious about her going behind his back to his parents, trying to make decisions for him.

After a long moment, he took a deep breath, wiped his eyes with his wrist, and headed for the exit.


	27. Reality Bites

Calvin got back to the shop, looking very pale and very upset. He was practically dragging himself around as he got to the shop. He felt like his guts had fallen straight out of his body, and the world just seemed to be a lot more distant and quiet somehow.

He still wasn't really sure how it happened. He had been angry with Hayley for telling his parents about his decision to quit school. He had always known he'd have to tell them eventually. It was going to be pretty hard to miss the fact he was no longer going to school, and especially once they realised they weren't going to his graduation ceremony, but he always wanted to tell them himself. He'd had this notion in his head of being able to go to them once he was earning a wage, perhaps even when he was able to get a place for him and Hayley to show them that he wasn't just throwing his life away as his dad kept insisting he was doing. She'd taken that from him.

Calvin wasn't a guy that generally made many plans. He was the kind of guy that liked to operate on general ideas. He wanted to be a mechanic, but he wasn't going to pin himself down to a particular shop or promise to work for a particular company or even get his own garage. The one thing in his life he felt sure about was Hayley.

They had now been together for years. Even though they were young, they were starting to get to a stage of talking about a lot of very serious topics. Moving in together, getting married, having kids…they'd discussed a lot of things that a lot of people much older than them hadn't gotten to talk about. He wasn't sure about much in his life, but he'd always imagined Hayley being the one thing that would be a fixture in his life, long before he became a Ranger, and long afterwards. However, somewhere in the space of a few minutes, he'd somehow managed to find himself saying the one thing that he never imagined he would.

He got to the shop, finding Joe setting up a couple of lamps. With the power out, he was limited in what he could do, but he had still promised to talk to Calvin. Seeing the workshop in dimly lit darkness, he couldn't help feeling like it did feel a lot dimmer. As much as he'd wanted to be a mechanic even before he and Hayley had been a couple, a lot of his dreams were so intertwined with her that he could hardly see them without her. He was already imagining using this job to support her, to get a place where they could be together while she went to college. Joe saw him and beamed a bright smile at him.

"Cal! Crazy this brown out, isn't it?" He asked. He saw the look on Calvin's face. "Whoa, are you alright man? You look like your truck just died."

"I've had a pretty lousy day." Calvin told him, sitting down. He saw the way Joe was looking to him. "Hayley and I had a fight and…and we're through."

"Really?" He asked. "Aw, man that's too bad. I'd offer you a beer, but…guess a root beer's going to have to do."

"Thanks." Calvin replied as Joe went and got a couple of drinks out the fridge. He twisted off the tops, handing one to Calvin.

"The power's not been out that long so the insulation should be keeping most of it cool still." He told him. "They're not warm…"

"It's great, thanks Joe." Calvin answered. Joe took a long slug, before sitting down in front of Calvin.

"OK, I know things are looking pretty grim right now, but maybe this will put a bit of a smile back on your face." He said with a smile. "I've been crunching some numbers and I think I have something that can work for both of us."

"Really? You've figured out a contract already?" Calvin asked him. Joe just looked through a few papers, before finding one for Calvin.

"Now, you understand the business isn't the steadiest, sometimes like now we'll be run off our feet with call-outs, other times we'll be doing mostly nickel-and-dime stuff like annual check-ups. Of course, there are ways of making them pay." He chuckled. Calvin couldn't help thinking about the invoices he'd seen from earlier. "You know, we all have to be a little creative to keep things running. It's how we pay ourselves instead of paying to work, right?"

"I…I guess." Calvin said a little uncertainly. Joe let him start to look through the contract.

"Now, ordinarily I'd be looking at a zero-hours contract. You know, I just can't pay people to sit about doing nothing, but I think I might just have enough work to keep you in shifts." Joe told him. Calvin started to furrow his brows. "Is there a problem?"

"Joe, I don't mean to complain, but…"

"As soon as I hear a but, I know everything before it is a fudge." Joe said cheerfully.

"This figure here…is that right?" Calvin asked him. Joe looked to him a little curiously.

"Well, I know it's a little over the average, but I prefer to work with round numbers, you know?" He asked.

"$41,000?" He asked.

"Well, yeah, that's about right for an entry level apprentice mechanic." Joe answered. Calvin's eyebrows just shot up.

"Apprentice?" Calvin asked him. "Joe…I'm a mechanic!"

"Cal, you're really not." Joe chuckled. "I mean, you have some skills, but you don't even have any accreditations. You've got no experience, you've got no employment history…"

"Joe, you've seen what I can do, you KNOW what I can do!" Calvin protested. "Come on, surely that's worth a little more right? If I work for what you're offering, more than half my salary will be gone by the time I pay my rent if I get that rat-trap I looked at earlier."

"Look, I appreciate it's tough, but you've got to appreciate anything I pay you comes from my profits. I need to get the best from my investment here." Joe told him. "Sure, in a couple of years once you've got your accreditations we can look at it again, but…"

"Joe, I'm better than most guys with those accreditations and you know it!" Calvin responded. "I could strip that truck over there down to nuts and bolts and build it back up again in a couple of hours."

"Yeah, and that's impressive." Joe told him. "Of course, you don't actually have anything that says you can do that."

Calvin's eyes narrowed a little.

"Wait, you're…you're squeezing me?" Calvin asked him. Joe just shrugged.

"Hey, I'm offering you a pretty fair contract." He told him, handing him a phone book. "Don't believe me, call some other garages, see what they'll offer you."

"You know what? Maybe I will." He suggested.

"Well, good luck with that." Joe told him. "Of course, without accreditations you'll be an apprentice anywhere that you get offered a job…presuming they even offer you anything."

Calvin paused for a moment as he heard this. He didn't like the way this was going. The pay wasn't terrible, he knew a lot of kids his age that would be working for a lot less, but it was still disappointing to hear. While he and Joe both knew what his skills were worth, he didn't have anything that actually proved he had those skills.

"I'm kind of going on a limb even having you working here." Joe stated. "But, if you want to try your luck looking for other opportunities, I really do wish you all the best."

He took the contract, folding it up and sticking it in Calvin's pocket.

"But I'll let you take that and think it over." He told him, patting him on the shoulder. "Unless…you know, you want to sign?"

Calvin was already pretty shell-shocked over the day's events. He just turned and walked out of the workshop, leaving Joe behind. Joe waited until he was gone, before pulling out his cell phone and dialling.

The following day, there were a surprising number of people at a loose end in the city. The power department was still working hard to re-route power from other nearby networks, but it still meant that the city was in brown out. The most vital buildings like the hospitals and emergency services had generators, but most of the rest of the city had to just get by as best as they could.

The schools couldn't open without power, meaning the kids were all getting a kind of free day. A few other businesses that couldn't operate without power were also taking the day, but the kids especially were at a loose end in the city today.

Mick had powered up a generator in the Ranger lab to keep things running there, but after a while the team got fed up of staring at the walls and opted to head out into the city to stretch their legs. They'd started off trying to get some exercise by heading to the park to play with Kody, but Hayley just wasn't in the mood. Between feeling his owner's sorrow and the fact that thanks to her gift she could talk to him, Kody was curled up with Hayley, comforting her in her time of need. The others were gathered around her too, but no one really knew quite what to say to her. They were in general trying to avoid the subject. No one really wanted to tread on it inadvertently.

"You know, there's almost something nice about it you know?" Levi asked. "No fancy modern devices, simple pleasures, just…enjoying a day outdoors, don't you think?"

"When were you born? 1885?" Emma asked, raising a little chuckle from the others. Levi wasn't old by any stretch of the imagination, he was only a couple of years older than most of them, and as a music performer in the modern age he was certainly no stranger to technology, but he did take the cowboy identity pretty seriously. Growing up with the Westons, he had indeed grown up on a ranch and enjoyed a lot of outdoor pursuits like riding, fishing and even hunting. "Not all of us think we're Wyatt Earp." It even managed to get a little whisp of a smile from Hayley. Sarah just looked to her sympathetically.

"Look, Calvin's mad, we get that, but maybe when he's cooled down a little…"

"You don't get it, he's never been that angry with me." Hayley told her. "I mean, I once managed to back Nitro into a tree and bent his tailgate and he barely even raised his voice to me. I…I think I really screwed up."

"You were trying to look out for him." Preston reminded her.

"Yeah, but maybe that's not what I should have been doing?" She suggested. "I mean, I'm meant to be his partner, right? Not his parent."

"Being someone's partner doesn't mean you have to stand by and do nothing while they jump off a cliff." Sandy suggested. "I mean, my grades are barely any better than his were, I know I've considered chucking it all in a couple of times, but I'd never hear the end of it from my parents or my sister."

She saw Brody about to raise a hand.

"Don't even think about it!" She warned him. Brody thought better of it and put his hand back down.

"Look, I know things look pretty bad right now, break-ups are never easy." Preston told her. "But…sometimes they happen for a reason."

"Look, no offence Preston, but you and Sarah probably had the most amicable break-up in the history of break-ups." Hayley reminded him. "It's not really the same thing."

She held Kody closely, stroking him tenderly.

"I…I really thought he was the one." Hayley told them.

"You want me to bite him?" Kody asked her. Hayley just chuckled and hugged him, assuring him she didn't need him to do that.

"You know, it has to be said, even figuring it out by lip-reading doesn't make the fact you bark to your dog any less weird." Emma assured her.

"So, anyone want to give Frisbee another go?" Brody suggested. Hayley just smiled and gestured out into the park.

"You guys go ahead. I'll just watch from here." She told them. With that, they all headed out to play, leaving Hayley with Kody in her arms.

Over at the Ranger lab, Calvin came in, finding Mick and Redbot working on something.

"Hey, Calvin." Mick said, looking a little surprised to see him there. "Um…I'm a little surprised to see you here."

"I'm a little surprised to be here to be honest." Calvin answered. Mick grabbed a couple of stools, pulling them both up to a work bench. He cleared it off, letting Calvin have some space. "I saw Hayley and the others at the park, and…I just figured I'd come here to avoid them."

"You came here to avoid them?" Mick asked him. "What about work?"

"Yeah, what about work?" Calvin sighed morosely. Mick just placed his elbow on the table and rested his face on his hand, listening to Calvin. "Mick, what's work like in the Lion Galaxy?"

"Well…most people were soldiers of some description." He reminded him. "For the few that weren't, I don't know. Long hours, hard work…"

"Working years before you earn any actual money?" Calvin asked. Mick just furrowed his brows.

"Is something wrong?" Mick asked him. "I thought you liked this job."

"I do, I really do. Being a mechanic was always my dream." Calvin told him. "It's just…well…"

"The dream isn't quite what you thought it would be?" Mick asked him. Calvin just nodded and handed him the contract.

"I know an apprenticeship is nothing to turn my nose up at. Most people would kill to get an opportunity like that offered to them." Calvin said. "But it just felt a little disappointing to know that despite everything I know, everything I can do, I'm still just considered the lowest rung on the ladder."

Mick just listened on as Calvin started to shift a little on his stool.

"I looked at a place…I was thinking about somewhere for me and Hayley." He said with a shake of the head. "The place is a total dive, but it would have been ours. Then I find out I'd kiss goodbye to half of everything I earn before I even start just to put a roof over my head."

"I see." Mick said sympathetically. "Well…it's just a starting job, you'd earn more in time…"

"Yeah, but how much time?" Calvin asked. "I asked Joe if he could manage a little more, and he just reminded me I've got no certificates. He said I could look other places, but...they'd all just say the same if they even let me in the door."

"Calvin, I'm going to tell you a secret that I don't think teachers are really meant to tell their students." Mick said, looking him straight in the eye. "Most employers, do not care about your qualifications."

"What?" He asked. "Mick, have you listened to…"

"No, hear me out." Mick told him. "Your qualifications are what gets you in the door. You can walk up to a prospective employer with the most glowing CV known to man, slap it on his desk and tell him all about the degree you passed with honours and the first thing he, or she, will do is point to the interview room and say, 'I have fifteen people out there with the exact same qualifications you do, what can you do that they can't'?"

"So, my qualifications aren't important?" Calvin asked him.

"No, your qualifications just give them the idea that you can do what they ask." Mick replied. "YOU have to convince them you can do it better than anyone else. But if you don't get that foot in the door in the first place, it's pretty hard to convince anyone."

"So…my qualifications are important…but also not important?" He asked. "Mick…that makes no sense!"

"Welcome to the employment market." Mick told him, patting him on the shoulder. "Where you'll work your ass off for peanuts for years just to convince people you can do a job you were able to do years earlier."

"Yeah, it's all that time earning nothing that's the problem." Calvin muttered. "I mean, I wanted to support Hayley…that's not happening now, but even then, I'll lose most of my salary just eating and putting a roof over me for years. I had no idea everything was so expensive."

"Oh, that song's a classic!" Mick chuckled. "They're even singing it in the Lion Galaxy."

"I just…I always thought if you worked hard you got what you were due." Calvin told him. "Now I figure out I'm going to have to work for years for a guy that might not even be that great of a guy."

"What makes you say that?" Mick asked him.

"I saw some of the invoices Joe was writing out. He charges people for extras he doesn't even do." Calvin replied. "He says everyone does it. Then he strong-armed me into this contract. He didn't outright say it, but I get a feeling he knows that not having my high school diploma I'm going to have a hard time getting an apprenticeship anywhere else, and…look, I know he says everyone does it, but it just doesn't feel right billing insurance companies for work we don't do. Then today he suggested he might do it for other clients too. Now it looks like I might have to work for him for a couple of years at least if I even want a chance of working anywhere else."

Calvin just ran a hand through his hair.

"And now I've lost Hayley, and she was one of the reasons I wanted to do all this…I've…I've made a mess of this haven't I?" Calvin asked him. "This is what people meant by burning bridges and limiting my options isn't it?"

"It could be." Mick answered.

"Do you…do you think you could have a word with Principal Hastings for me?" Calvin asked him. "I mean, I hate to run with my tail between my legs but…"

"Calvin, the bravest thing anyone can do is admit when they made a mistake. There's no shame in taking a step backwards once in a while." Mick answered. "Especially when life teaches you a little lesson."

"What?" That if you don't get the qualifications you need, your options are working for peanuts for a crook?" Calvin asked him.

"Well…kind of." Mick told him. Just then, another alarm sounded. Calvin just groaned out loud.

"Aw man, when will things ever stop?" Calvin asked rhetorically. Mick just clapped him on the back.

"Welcome to the joys of being an adult." Mick told him, as Calvin just took to his heels and ran out to face the latest battle.


	28. The Eleventh Hour

The Rangers arrived, finding Tynamonn waiting for them, attacking the city with some kudabots. It was a little bit of a surprise not to see Wrench there, he had been a huge obstacle for them now in two consecutive battles, but now the city was in brown out, they could only assume it was taking him a little longer to get charged up.

"Sandy, what are you doing here?" Brody asked her.

"Emma did a scan, Wrench is nowhere near here." She assured him. She looked to Tynamonn, who stopped smashing up the city long enough to realise that they were there, turning towards them.

"This guy again?" Sandy asked. "Can't we just give him a fishing rod and ask him to sit by a pond?"

"Don't let his appearance fool you." Hayley told them. "He might look like something from the gardening section of the hardware store but he's tougher than he looks."

"Ah, Rangers! So pleased to see you again!" Tynamonn taunted them. "Wrench will be along in due course. Of course, if I destroy you in the meantime..."

He staggered as a shot rang out and hit him square in the chest. He stared at the smoking section of his armour, and then looked up. The rest of the team just looked around to Sandy.

"You know, we can talk this out and give Wrench time to recharge and come back, or take out his tag-team partner now." She commented. The rest of the team all shrugged as they rushed to the attack.

In another part of the city, Maxie was working on her thesis. There was a lot of stuff she couldn't actually do until the power came back on since most of her work was on the computer, but she could go over what she had already printed out and figure out how she wanted to present it.

She was fortunate enough that much of the work was already done. She'd collected her data and done the analysis, she just needed to figure out the best way to present it to get the best possible grade from the review board. She'd been working a long time for her PhD, and as much as the job at the aquarium and the associated internship was a wonderful job that she loved, the thought of finally getting to apply for paying work was something she'd been looking forward to for a long time.

"Just a minute!" She called as she heard the doorbell, shuffling around some papers as she tried to form her ideas into a workable format. She got up and headed for the door, unlocking it and opening the door. She was a little surprised to find Laura standing on the doorstep. "Laura, what a...surprise."

"Can I come in?" She asked.

"I'm afraid Aaron isn't here right now." Maxie told her. "He's at the Aquarium, with there's a lot of the tank maintenance that needs to be done manually..."

"It was you I was here to see actually." Laura replied, gesturing inside. "Do you mind?"

Maxie was a little surprised, and also slightly apprehensive. To say the last time she'd seen Laura was a little tense would be an understatement on the level of saying the Stock Market Crash had been a little inconvenient. She showed Laura in.

"Um...I'd offer you a coffee, but...you know, the power." She stated. "I could get you some OJ."

"That'd be nice thanks." Laura replied as Maxie went to get it. She headed through to the living room, finding the papers on the table.

"You're still working hard I see." She commented.

"Yes, just doing what I can." Maxie answered as she came back. "Just as well I'm on schedule or this could have been a real issue. I'm a little worried when we'll get the power back though. I'd really like to get this finished. I still need to get it bound."

"I see." Laura responded. "Maxie...I just wanted to apologise."

"You did?" Maxie asked her. Laura just sighed and nodded.

"Look, I don't have any excuses." She admitted. "This thing with Trevor, it really got to me you know? I just...I just keep seeing people tear into him. I understand a lot of bad things happened, but I just see the man I love trying to put things back together and it feels like no one is willing to give him a chance. It breaks my heart, and I feel like I have to defend him and...I guess I just lashed out."

"I do understand loving someone that people attack." Maxie conceded. "When I was talking about my arm, I wasn't taking shots, I promise..."

"No, I get that, and to be honest, after thinking about it for a bit, even if you were, maybe you'd have a right to a few shots." She answered. "So, how is the arm anyway?"

"It's getting better." Maxie admitted. "I'm not going to be performing surgery or anything any time soon, but since I never did to begin with, I guess that's one thing."

"But surely you do have to do dissections." Laura replied. "You know, to find out how marine life died in areas of suspected contamination?"

Maxie just looked to her, a little impressed. Laura just chuckled a little.

"We might be divorced, but you forget I was married to Aaron for seven years, I did occasionally listen to the man." She reminded her.

"It's a little easier when your patient isn't alive, but...yeah, it's a challenge." Maxie answered.

"You said your stuff is on computer, do you have any of it backed up?" Laura asked her. Maxie just looked to her curiously.

"Always." She answered.

"Well, if you would like, my office has a generator." Laura told her. "It's not exactly the done thing to use company resources for outside interests, but being supervisor does have some privileges. I'm sure I could spare some paper if you need to do some printing."

"Really?" Maxie asked her. "That would be great! If I could just do some formatting and printing, then I'd only need to find someone to bind it..."

"We have a facility for that in-house." Laura told her. Maxie just smiled as she gathered up a few things, grabbing a flash drive.

"Alright, that's everything." Maxie told her.

"I'm just parked out front." Laura told her, leading her from the apartment.

Back at the site of the battle, the Rangers were whittling down the number of kudabots while Brody and Levi tried to take down Tynamonn. He wasn't the most nimble of warriors, they didn't have any trouble hitting him, but getting their hits to do anything seemed to be a real struggle.

"Is there any part of this guy that isn't armoured?" Levi complained as he backed off, shaking out his hands, which were starting to hurt from the vibrations running up his weapon as he struck him. "I feel like I'm hitting an anvil!"

"We definitely need to turn things up a little." Brody conceded. "I swear I got him right in the face and he didn't even flinch!"

"Guys, how are things going over here?" Preston asked as the others finally finished with their opponents and joined them.

"We're just going to turn this up a few notches." Brody responded, getting out the Lion Fire Star. "I've got an idea, but it's pretty wild. I'll need a distraction."

"Distractions are my thing." Calvin replied as they rushed towards Tynamonn. They attacked him from all sides, trying to keep him switching his view among them, keeping him looking anywhere but Brody. The Red Ranger powered up into his Lion Fire Armour, then pulled out the Fusion Star.

"OK...here goes nothing." Brody stated. "Alright guys, back off and lend me your swords!"

Brody ran towards Tynamonn, powering up his blade. He spun around, slashing into him a couple of times, before driving his blade through one of his legs. Snatching another sword from the air, he did the same with the other leg, then one of his arms, then the other, grabbing the last two swords; he rammed them straight through Tynamonn's chest.

"What in the hell?" Preston asked. "How is he even still standing?"

"He won't be for long." Brody assured him, summoning the Super Star Blade. Clipping the Lion Fire Star to it, he surged straight for Tynamonn, sacrificing all of his power. By the time he got to the other side, his armour and his suit disappeared. There was an explosion and sparks from his head as he turned around.

"No, freaking...WAY!" Calvin stated. "He's STILL standing?"

Just then, his body fell to the ground. Something tumbled away from the head as they approached. They all stared down at it.

"He was a robot?" Hayley asked. "That explains a lot."

"Guys, what's this?" Sandy asked, pointing inside the head. Sarah got down on her knees and looked inside closely.

"Buttons? Levers?" She asked. "Guys, call me crazy, but...I'd say this looks like a cockpit."

"A cockpit for what?" Preston asked.

"YOU STUPID RANGERS!" They heard a tiny voice yelling. They all looked to each other in confusion, before turning around. "Look what you did to my body!"

"Oh...my...God!" Sandy commented.

"I thought I'd seen everything." Hayley gasped. There, a little way from them, was Tynamonn. Only...he was somewhat less intimidating now. He was only about ten centimetres tall! "He's tiny!"

"Do you know how long it took me to make that?" He screamed at them. "I'm going to destroy you all!"

"Look, we're sorry we broke your toy, but that's kind of what happens when your toy is smashing up cities." Preston teased him. "Now, we really don't have to hurt you, you can just go home and...OW!"

He started hopping as Tynamonn blasted him in the toes. The Rangers started to block his blasts as they sought cover.

"You've got to give it to the little guy, he's not giving up." Levi commented.

"He's not giving up, that means we have to take him down." Brody responded.

"Guys, this...this all feels a little mean." Sarah said. "Can't we just catch him in a jar and release him somewhere?"

"He's a monster Sarah, not a spider!" Hayley reminded her. "If he built that last body he can build another."

Just then, Calvin broke cover and started marching towards Tynamonn. He took a few blasts as he went, his suit sparking as it protected him.

"Stay back, stay back!" Tynamonn screamed as Calvin came for him. "NOOOOOOO!"

Calvin brought up his foot, before stomping down on him as hard as he could. There was a bright flash as he did. All the Rangers just flinched.

"That...that just felt wrong!" Preston commented.

"Yeah, well...at least it's over." Calvin replied, scraping his boot off on a curb. "Show's over, Ninjas Win."

"Oh, do you now?" They heard a voice say. They all turned around in time to see Wrench standing behind them, holding Tynamonn's robotic body.

"Oh, now this isn't good." Preston stated.

"Guys, he can't have charged up completely, not in this time." Levi reminded them. Just then, they watched as Wrench rammed his claw into the robotic body. Sarah gestured to them to back up.

"Oh, that's not good!" She commented. "Guys, this was a gambit! Cosmo's sacrificed Tynamonn...he knew Wrench could use his power cells to recharge!"

"Then let's take him down before he finishes!" Brody responded, morphing once more. "Sandy, you stay back! Come on Rangers!"

They rushed towards Wrench, but with a massive discharge, he knocked them all to the ground. In turn, he started to go after each of the Rangers, hacking them down with his axe with some powerful, well-placed blows.

Sandy could only watch on in horror as her friends took a beating. When Wrench was moving towards Preston, she could finally take no more and ran straight for him.

"SANDY NO!" Brody screamed, but too late, Wrench managed to grab hold of her. Sandy's powers flared up once more.

"Now, this...THIS is a rush!" Wrench commented. Sandy tried to fight out of his grip, but Wrench was simply much too strong. Before long, he had more than enough power that one massive ball of green lightning completely floored the whole team. Sandy dropped to the ground, her vision beginning to fade out. She could see him taking up his axe.

"Wrench, WRENCH! Stop!" Cosmo's voice called out. "Not yet!"

"What?" Wrench asked. "I've just beaten..."

"No, this is no end fitting for champions like the Rangers." Cosmo told him. "Bring them to the studio."

With that, Sandy finally passed out.

Sometime later, they all started to come to. They looked around, realising that they were now once more on the Warrior Dome. They'd been brought here once before when Galvanax was on the verge of victory. They all found their hands had been shackled behind their backs.

"OK, this is way too familiar." Calvin grumbled sarcastically. Cosmo came out onto the stage, dancing as the audience started to cheer.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, who do you love?"

"COSMO!" They all yelled in response. He gestured towards the Rangers as they were all dragged onto their knees by kudabots.

"Now, you all know who these people are, you've seen them dominate, you've seen them humiliate, you've seen them decimate some of the most powerful creatures in all the galaxy now for two seasons. Ladies and gentlemen, the POWER RANGERS!"

There was a huge applause from the audience for the Rangers. Levi just sighed.

"Normally I like applause." Levi stated. "But I have a feeling that it isn't for our wellbeing."

"Wrench had us dead to rights." Brody remarked. "Why didn't he just finish us?"

"But, ladies and gentlemen, just as a sun will rise and a sun will fall, so too will champions. The Rangers who have rolled roughshod over some of your favourites, legends of the show with all the dominance one would expect...there comes a time for a title to change hands." Cosmo announced. "So, put your hands together for the one that will now carry that title, your future champion, WRENCH!"

There was an ear-splitting response as Wrench strode out onto the stage. He'd been cleaned up, polished and now looked even more gaudy and outlandish. Badonna came onto the stage, carrying the championship belt. Wrench stood, posing for the audience as Badonna attached the belt around his waist.

"Wrench, you are without doubt a most deserving champion!" Badonna told him. "I see big things coming for you!"

"No doubt, no doubt, and I'm sure that we will hear from the champion in the months and the years to come." Cosmo stated, before Wrench snatched the mic from him.

"I have something to say!" He yelled, before turning to Sarah. "Who's laughing now? Not you, that's for sure! And once I'm done here, I'm going to Amber Beach to find that little friend of yours..."

"You idiot, Kendall doesn't even live in Amber Beach anymore!" Sarah told him. "She bought a farmhouse with Matt in Millport months ago."

"Ah, well that'll make finding her quicker." Wrench commented. Sarah just looked a little sheepish.

"Oops." She muttered. Cosmo stepped into the scene.

"Now, Wrench, there's just one thing left." He told him. Wrench looked to his axe, but seemed to think better of it, dropping it on the stage.

"Why should I get my armour all messed up?" Wrench asked, looking to Sandy. "When I can cook you all alive with your own power!"

He strode towards Sandy, who struggled to try and get away, but she was held fast by Kudabots. She wished she could control her power, she had no idea why they 'worked' on Wrench, but didn't on Kudabots. She pulled back as much as she could while he reached for her, but he finally grabbed her head, holding onto her as her power surged into him.

He started laughing as he charged up, but after a few moments, he stopped laughing. He suddenly looked more concerned than overjoyed. He started to back away, staring at his hands, which were still sparking.

"What...what's going on?" He screamed.

"Wrench, what are you doing?" Badonna yelled at him. "The Rangers are right there, finish them!"

"I...I don't know what's...GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

He screamed out as his body was wracked by agonising power. The Rangers all looked to Sandy.

"Don't look at me, I have no idea what's going on!" She told them. Power pulsed around Wrench, and a dark energy started to swirl around him. Badonna started panicking and retreated to a safe distance as there was a huge explosion, which tore Wrench's body asunder. In his place, a portal started to open up. Energy flowed from it, shooting out in all directions.

"What's going on Cosmo?" She screamed. After a long moment, a figure strode out of the portal. The Rangers watched in terror as Lord Drakkon strode out of the portal. He was powered up in his most powerful form, his suit black with golden armour, his cloak billowing behind him as he strode out onto the stage. He pulled off his crested helmet to address the Rangers directly.

"Uh...guys? Is it wrong I'm wishing we could have Wrench back?" Sarah asked. Drakkon looked to the Rangers and smirked.

"Wrench served his purpose." Drakkon told them. "All that time, all that power he was building up, little did he realise he was powering up the device that would finally allow me to bring my full power through from the limbo to which my forces have been banished!"

He reached up, and power started to flow from the portal. The lights flickered and sparks flew as he sent his power forth.

"I've sent my sentinels to all corners of this pathetic planet. With battles on all fronts, your friends will have more than enough to keep them busy, but just in case, I've sealed Summer Cove in a force field. No one is coming to help you, which leaves you completely at my mercy."

"What do you want?" Brody demanded. "What is this about?"

"This is about my dreams, my birthright being ripped from my grasp at the last moment, about me losing the ability to shape all existence in my image." Drakkon explained. "But now...now I have the power I need to bring all my forces to bear, and to finally get the last piece of the puzzle I need to re-shape all existence. All I need is the Nexus Prism."

With a wave of his hand, the Rangers' manacles all fell from their wrists, they all got up, confronting him.

"You want the Nexus Prism; you'll have to come through us!" Brody yelled.

"We've danced this dance already; you know how it will end." He reminded them. "Of course, unlike some, I am not someone who does not learn from his mistakes. If there was one thing I learned about being a Ranger it's that sometimes...having friends is a good thing."

They all watched as five figures stepped out of the portal, lining up alongside Drakkon. He just smirked.

"No...way." Sarah gulped. "Are those...?"

"You have twenty four hours to deliver your Power Stars and the Nexus Prism." Drakkon told him. "Otherwise...we come and take them."

With that, he waved a hand, and they all disappeared in a bright flash.

The Rangers reappeared back in Summer Cove. Looking up, they saw the sky was glowing, and shimmering with energy.

"Looks like he wasn't kidding about the force field." Hayley remarked. "So, what do we do?"

"If anyone has any suggestions, now's the time." Brody admitted.


	29. Drakkon's Negotiator

**A/N: **I am REALLY sorry about the long break between chapters. I've had a whole lot of distractions lately, but rest assured, I fully intend to put a new focus on this story, which should see a good few chapters out before the end of the year, and who knows? Possibly even a finale. Thank you for your patience.

The city of Summer Cove was not a stranger to panic within the last two years, but it had never been in the full throes of an outright invasion before. It had been four full years since The Armada had been destroyed, and many believed that nothing like that would ever happen again, certainly not in a city which until the beginning of Cosmo's broadcasts had enjoyed a reputation as rather dull as far as violence and crime had been concerned.

Now though, the ominous nature of Drakkon's threat was clear even in the skies. Looking up, people could only see a shimmering, crackling forcefield, cutting them off from help out with the city. People had already taken to the streets in desperate attempts to flee, only to find that they were trapped in a hopeless situation.

Drakkon decided that now was the time to address his new subjects.

Cosmo watched as his followers took control of virtually every aspect of his ship. After hacking every communications network, they began the broadcast. Drakkon stood before the cameras, eschewing a lead-in from Cosmo. He needed no introduction.

"Citizens of Summer Cove. You find yourselves in a unique position. You find yourselves in the grace and mercy of Lord Drakkon." He began his address, flanked by two of his followers. The other three were ensuring that the broadcast crew were keeping things running smoothly with barely-concealed threats. "I seek no bloodshed. In fact, it is exactly the opposite that I seek. I seek nothing but to unify all under one banner. MY banner! Follow me, and there will be no more crime, no more violence, no more bloodshed!"

He started to pace the stage as he continued to stare, unblinking into the camera.

"I have already met with your Power Rangers, and I have given them twenty four hours to give to me the source of their power, the Nexus Prism." Drakkon declared. "If they comply with my request, there will be no need for any suffering. If, however, they selfishly cling to the power in their possession. If they do not heed the good grace of my mercy, then I will have no choice but to send forth my followers to claim it by force."

He swept back his cloak as he stood before the camera, glaring into it.

"You may know who they are. If so, if you care about your world, your family, your friends, and indeed, even your Rangers, you will beckon them to submit to me." Drakkon proclaimed. "If not, then just know whatever else happens falls squarely on them."

In the Ranger Base, the team were watching the announcement. They weren't too surprised that Drakkon was confident enough to declare his intent to the world. From what they'd heard he'd already almost destroyed several universes before, and the fact he'd survived almost complete destruction within the Morphing Grid itself didn't seem to have deterred his confidence at all. The only thing they were a little surprised about was that he hadn't revealed their identities.

"Well, I'll give him one thing, his manifesto is at least pretty open." Hayley remarked. "It's just a shame he's open about the fact that he wants to destroy us."

"OK guys, I've tried, but I can only get a few images from outside the dome." Mick told them. "I can't get a message to any of the others yet."

"And?" Brody asked.

"It's…not good." Mick told them, patching through some grainy, fuzzy images from all around the planet. "Amber Beach, Ocean Bluff, Angel Grove, Mariner Bay…Drakkon's sent Sentinels to pretty much every part of the planet."

"He's keeping us fighting on all sides." Preston summarised. "Which means…"

"We're on our own." Sarah concluded in a sombre tone. "So, what are our options?"

"I'm not really sure we have too many options." Levi replied. "Cosmo's ship is outside the dome so we can't go and take the fight to them."

"Which means we're waiting for him to come and take the fight to us?" Calvin asked. "Isn't that kind of the opposite of what we want?"

"I really wish we had better options." Brody agreed. "I somehow doubt Drakkon's new squad is really going to care too much about collateral damage. Fighting in the city, there's no two ways about it. People are going to get hurt, or worse."

"Guys, I'm not crazy am I?" Preston asked them. "About those new friends of Drakkon's? I mean, they look…they do look an awful lot like…you know…right?"

"Drakkon's been across more dimensions than any of us knew existed." Mick reminded them. "I can't imagine in all those Earths its impossible there aren't Rangers that decided that the good side wasn't for them."

"I'm…I'm really sorry guys." Sandy said as her sister held her. "This is all my fault."

"Sandy, it's not…"

"No, it is." She responded. "If it wasn't for me, if I could control this stupid power of mine, then Drakkon would never have been able to come back."

"He'd have found a way." Preston told her. "He's been at this for God knows how long. He's been a pain in our asses now for ages, and apparently for the other Rangers a lot longer. He was bound to find a way sooner or later…"

"But it was my power he used to open the portal!" She reminded them. "I've never claimed to be a great Ranger. I've done my best, but I've been fumbling my way through this more than anything else."

"No, Sandy, you've been great!" Preston assured her.

"I just…don't want to make things any worse than they already are." She answered. "I'm sorry."

"Sandy, none of us blame you for this." Preston told her. "We've all made mistakes. Hell, Sarah managed to create twelve Galvanaxes. Brody once used the Warrior Dome's database to tell him how to fight monsters apparently thinking no one would re-write it. I once turned Hayley invisible! What matters is we get back up and keep going, right guys?"

He looked to the others, but there was an awkward silence there.

"Guys?" He asked.

"You know, I don't need to be able to hear to know that when your lips aren't moving you're saying something louder than ever." Sandy sighed as she got up. She and Emma just left the room.

"Sandy, wait!" Preston called after her, before rounding on the others. "What the hell was that?"

"Presto, we all think she's great, but lately…that sparky thing she does? It's been more of a hindrance than a help." Hayley said tentatively.

"Maybe if we knew what it was or how it worked it would be a game-changer, but right now…"

"Guys, she's one of us, she's a Ranger!" Preston stated. "Now, I know with what we're up against we'd love to have some more veterans with us, but do you really think we're in a position to turn away Rangers?"

"Preston, you need to take the boyfriend goggles off for a minute." Calvin started to say.

"Oh, well you'd know all about boyfriend goggles wouldn't you?" Preston snapped at him. "Or you would do if you didn't throw them and your girlfriend away by being a colossal dickhead!"

Calvin connected with a right cross straight to Preston's lip just as Levi grabbed him and hauled him backwards, while Brody did the same to Preston. The Blue Ranger just touched his fingers to his lip, seeing the blood, before storming out of the base.

Calvin didn't say another word. Grabbing his things, he headed for another exit, heading out of the base.

"And that…is precisely what we don't need." Levi commented.

"Everyone go home." Brody announced. "Get your heads on straight. Given what we're up against, if we don't…we're going to lose more than our heads."

Up on the Warrior Dome, Drakkon was in the throne room, with his followers around him as Cosmo came into the room. He bowed respectfully to him as he entered.

"Lord Drakkon, I must congratulate you on a most successful broadcast…"

"There will be time enough for more." Drakkon told him, waving him off. "How long has it been since we delivered our message?"

"Three hours Lord Drakkon." One of his female followers told him. He just looked to her, and then shook his head.

"I know better than anyone that Rangers are a stubborn breed." He sighed. "But I feel like this particular team aren't taking me seriously enough. Three whole hours, and not so much as a word? I feel most disrespected."

"Well, we could always go and have a little fun." One of them suggested. "Show them that we're serious."

"I appreciate that, but we both know how you like to break your toys when you play." He said thoughtfully. "No, I think this one needs a slightly more…thoughtful touch."

He pointed to another of his followers.

"Have you been tracking her?" Drakkon asked.

"Indeed I have." The follower replied. "And best of all, she's on her own…mostly. She does have another girl with her, but that shouldn't be a problem."

"Still, take some Basher Bots with you." Drakkon told him. "Remember, don't touch her."

"As you wish." He replied, leaving the room. Drakkon just gestured his followers around him.

"Movie time." One of them chipped in cheerfully. "Cosmo, go gather some snacks."

As Cosmo scurried away, Drakkon tuned in his viewing screens to catch the action.

"You know, at times like this I miss Ernie." He stated. "His smoothies were good. Perhaps there's a reality where I didn't disembowel him."

Calvin arrived back home, coming into the Living Room.

"Mom, dad, I'm home!" He called out. Mr and Mrs Maxwell ran into the hall, immediately grabbing him in tight hugs.

"Oh, thank God you're alright!" Ava rushed out. "We were worried sick! We were trying to call…"

"Shoot, my phone's still off." Calvin said, pulling it out and turning it back on to find almost three dozen missed messages from his parents. Given the fact the world had just been invaded while he was out, he wasn't too surprised they'd tried to call him. "I'm sorry I made you worry…"

"And we're sorry we made you feel like you couldn't come to us." Mr Maxwell told him, relieved that his son was alright. "Look, I admit that I wasn't thrilled with your decision, but all this…this just showed me that things can be so much worse. If you want to…"

"Actually…I've decided that I'm going to go back to school." Calvin told them. "You know, presuming school still exists after all this."

"Cal?" His mom asked.

"Look, I admit, getting to work on cars and drive around all day was kind of cool but, I got some pretty sharp lessons in reality." Calvin admitted. "Joe wasn't offering as much as I was expecting. Turns out all I'd have been is an apprentice until I was accredited. Then I took a look at apartments…"

"You looked at apartments?" His mom gulped. He just sighed.

"It was pretty sobering alright." He told her. "Don't get me wrong, I don't intend to live with you guys forever, but I don't think I'll be going anywhere in too much of a hurry…as long as that's alright with you guys."

"Calvin, we will do whatever we can to help you." Mr Maxwell told him. "Times are tough. Hell, they were tough when your mom and I got together and started out. We know all about that struggle and things weren't nearly as expensive as they are now."

"The important thing is, one of the reasons we worked so hard to have a good life is so that hopefully, when your time comes, it'll be just a little bit easier for you." Ava told him. "And when you and Hayley do decide to move on…"

"Yeah, that's another thing." Calvin interrupted her. "There is no me and Hayley."

"Really?" Ava asked him. He just nodded.

"I did…I did something really stupid." Calvin admitted. "And now I don't know if I can take it back!"

With that, his parents just grabbed him, hugging him tightly.

In another part of the city, Hayley was just getting home to her mom's place. Brody had told them all to go and get their heads on straight, but right now she wasn't sure that was even possible anymore.

Calvin was more than just her boyfriend. He was like another part of her. He was her best friend, the one person who knew more about her than probably anyone, even her own parents. She had often thought of the future, and she had some pretty wild dreams, from being an ambassador, or a UN spokesperson or even a senator right up to and including becoming President. But no matter how many different paths those dreams took or wherever they went, the one thing that was constant in all of those was that Calvin was with her.

She didn't feel right about calling his parents when he dropped out of school. She didn't like being anything less than honest with Calvin, but she didn't know what else to do. She had every faith that he could do whatever he wanted. He was never the most ambitious guy, and she was perfectly certain he'd be more than happy working in a garage and changing oil and balancing wheels for the rest of his days, but she just wanted him to have the best start he possibly could. If he wanted, she couldn't think of anyone else she'd rather have working on Air Force One or Marine One if she ever did make it to the Oval Office and would be flying around with him and their kids.

She was still shaken by the break-up. She'd never seen Calvin so angry with her. She could barely remember seeing him so angry with anyone. She knew that more than anything it had to hurt him to feel like she would not be honest with him and speak with him directly about her concerns. It broke her heart to think that something she'd done with the best of intentions might well have ruined the best thing that had happened to her.

She got into the house and was a little surprised by what she found in the Living Room. There, sitting with a couple of drinks was her mom…and Maxie.

"Well, Maxie I have to hand it to you, you've done something I don't think Aaron ever could." She declared. "You've actually made this interesting! I couldn't put it down!"

"You really like it? You think it reads alright?" Maxie asked in response.

"Absolutely! I'm not an academic, but I do know one thing, I can actually understand what you're trying to say. You know…before all that statistics stuff."

"I really can't thank you enough." Maxie declared. "I had no idea how I was going to get this put together when the power went out. I…"

She noticed that Laura was looking over her shoulder and turned around.

"Oh, hey, Hayley!" Maxie greeted her. "We were about to call you, it's been insane in the city, the networks are jammed up so we couldn't get through…"

"Yeah, I'm fine…what's going on here?" Hayley asked.

"Oh, well…your mom came around to straighten things out from the other night and when the power went out she took me to the office to get my thesis printed up and bound." Maxie told her. "Now all I need to do is send it to the University. You know…when this whole invasion thing is over."

"Yeah, those things are inconvenient." Hayley said, a little wrong-footed by the casual way she talked about the invasion.

"Oh, the Rangers will figure something out, they always do." Laura agreed. "In the meantime, where's that husband of mine with the drinks?"

"Unfortunately none of the whites are chilled properly, so I had to go look out a good red." Trevor said as he came in the room, carrying a bottle.

"Handsome AND a good judge of wine?" Maxie said, looking to Laura. "I can totally see why you snapped this one up!"

"Yeah, I'm just glad I did." Laura replied. Just then, the door opened and Aaron came in.

"Hi, um…I didn't quite understand the message, you said I was to bring the food…here?" Aaron asked. Maxie just pointed to the vacant chair.

"Oh, you just sit yourself down my man, we have got a whole lot of celebrating to do!" Maxie declared, showing him a leather-bound book. He smiled.

"Is that it? Is that really it?" He asked.

"Laura here was kind enough to let me put it together at her office." Maxie told him. "Just under three years' work, and all I need is to hand it in and get my letters!"

"That's amazing!" Aaron declared. "Um…sorry, there's not much I could get which didn't require cooking…I hope everyone's alright with sushi."

A loud cheer went up. Hayley just stood, blinking a few times before a little smile crossed her face. She had one weird-ass family, but she wouldn't have it any other way.

In another part of the city, Preston finally caught up with Emma and Sandy as they walked home. He ran around in front of them, stopping them. He needed to stop for a moment to catch his breath.

"Sandy…Sandy, wait. You need to listen…"

"Preston?" She asked. "What happened to your mouth?"

"This?" Preston asked, dabbing it slightly. "Oh, that's…not important. Look, you need to come back. You need to join us…"

"Preston, I…I can't." Sandy told him. "All I seem to do is make things worse."

"Sandy, you're a Ranger." Preston told her.

"Yeah, a Ranger by accident." She answered.

"What? You think I got into this by choice?" He asked her. "I have absolutely no clue how or why the Nexus Prism does…literally anything it does. I do know one thing though. It has never made a mistake. Every single thing it does it does for a reason, even if that isn't immediately apparent."

"Then maybe it's due a mistake." She suggested. Just then, there was a bright flash of light. Preston turned around in time to see one of Drakkon's followers standing behind him, along with some Basher Bots. He stood, taller than all three of them, and had a kind of sandy coloured hair, some of which was faded slightly into grey. He had deep, blue eyes, behind wire-rimmed glasses which reflected a lot of the light. He had some pronounced wrinkles on his face, along with a few scars, and was wearing a black uniform of sorts, trimmed in blue piping. A long cloak billowed around him in the breeze.

"Oh great, this is just what we need." Preston responded. "What are you doing here? We've still got seventeen hours!"

"Lord Drakkon thinks you're not taking him seriously. Such disrespect will not go unanswered." The man declared. "So, he sent me to make you see that he means business."

"Like we don't know that already, you've invaded the whole planet!" Sandy snapped sarcastically. "So, what does he want?"

"Funny you should ask." The man said with a sick smile, pointing right at her. Sandy just gulped.

"No way! Not happening!" Preston yelled back. "You go back and tell Drakkon he can have his answer at the agreed upon time and no sooner!"

"You see, this is where we have a failure to communicate." The follower answered. In a bright flash of light, he transformed into a Ranger form. Blue, armoured, with three pronounced horns on the top of his helmet. He had armoured plates on his legs and shoulders, along with a chest piece that looked like crossed bandoliers or a four point seatbelt with a red ruby in the centre. He had a long, spear like weapon with multiple wicked looking spikes at each end. There was a blaster in a holster at his hip. He twirled the lance in expert strokes. "You seem to be under the impression I'm asking."

"You seem to be under the impression I care!" Preston replied as he and Sandy stepped forward.

"NINJA SPIN!" They called out together as the Basher Bots rushed them.


	30. Accelerating The Negotiations

Sarah was on her way home, but had taken something of a detour. She had already sent her parents a message to assure them she was alright and she was on her way home, but for now she just didn't feel much like rushing home. For now, she was just wandering through Summer Cove, through the streets, kind of in a daze.

While she hadn't been a Ranger, she had been involved with Ranger business longer than the others. She'd stumbled onto the identities of the Amber Beach team and worked with them for a time to help them in their campaign against Sledge. She'd always wanted to help others, and she had always done her very best, even when it wasn't her in the suit.

She'd been over the moon when she was chosen to be a Ranger this time around. She had admired her friends and the commitment and sacrifice they showed as they fought the forces of evil. Now though, she wasn't feeling quite so upbeat about the whole deal.

The power in much of the city was still out. She'd destroyed the local power plant to prevent Wrench having another power source, but since the invasion, there was now no way for crews to connect them to the rest of the grid. There were fewer people out on the streets, not that she could blame them. A few people were still making their way home but for the most part people were now with their families, cowering in their homes. The whole thing made her feel like a failure. A part of her wondered if perhaps her old team wouldn't have been able to deal with this by now.

"Hey, Sarah!" She heard someone call out. She looked around, but rolled her eyes as she saw Victor and Monty approaching. Of all the things in the world she didn't have the patience or the energy for, it was them. It wasn't that she disliked them especially. The problem was the exact opposite. The problem was she was still struggling to kick her stupid crush on Victor. "See, Victor? I told you it was her!"

"Yeah…yeah, it is." Victor said as he arrived. "Hi."

"Yeah, hi." Sarah responded. Victor just stood, not saying anything. Monty was the one that opened up the conversation.

"What are you still doing outside?" Monty asked her. "I thought you'd be home by now."

"I just…felt like a little walk." She told them.

"Well, maybe we could walk with you?" Monty suggested a little too enthusiastically. "It's a little way to my place."

As they joined her, Sarah just let out a groan. She really didn't want company. If she did, she'd have gone home like Brody told her to.

"So, this new guy…Drakkon." Monty commented. "Talk about an entrance."

"Monty, that's probably the last thing Sarah wants to talk about right now." Victor stated. She smiled a little hearing that, but it only lasted a moment. She just kept walking.

"Look, you guys are always facing tough odds." Monty said, trying to reassure her. "I'm sure this guy's no different."

"That's just the thing Monty, he is different." Sarah told him. "He's about as different as they get."

"So he doesn't want to take over the world?" Monty asked her. Sarah just snorted.

"I wish." She replied. "Turns out he doesn't want to just rule this universe, but all of them."

"Wow, talk about ambitious." Monty said, before Victor clamped a hand over his mouth.

"I've moved around a lot in my life." She told them. "I've been living in a new city almost every year since I was a kid…this is the first place I was starting to think of as a home. Now this guy comes down and it looks like no matter what happens, this city is going to be Ground Zero. Even if some miracle happens and we manage to win, how much of the city is going to be left?"

She wrapped her arms around herself.

"Then there's the small matter of Drakkon. Last time he surfaced it took almost every Ranger in existence to beat him." She informed them. "Now, it's just us and it looks like he's brought his own little band of psychopaths to the party."

"Hey." Victor said, coming around in front of her. "I've not known you all that long, but I've learned a long time ago that no one underestimates you."

"Victor, I…"

"No, for once you listen." Victor interrupted her. "I grew up without my dad. I grew up without him because he put himself at risk to help make sure other people came home. He was my hero. In my eyes there was nothing he couldn't have done, and I've spent a long time working hard and trying to live up to him."

He took her by the shoulders and looked straight into her eyes.

"But when I met you, when I found out what you and the others do every day, it made me feel like there was someone else out there that could inspire me to be better than I was." He told her. "You might be bruised right now, might be in a funk, but you better pick yourself back up, because I believe in you."

"You…you do?" She asked.

"I'd put my life in your hands in a second." Victor assured her. Sarah and Victor stood, staring into each other's eyes for a long time. Monty was sitting at the side, just waiting, itching to see if one of them would make the move that he felt they both wanted to take. Just then, Sarah's communicator bleeped. She answered it.

"You're go for Sarah." She declared.

"Sarah, its Sandy!" Sandy screamed down the communicator. "Drakkon sent one of his goons!"

"Sandy, it's OK." Sarah tried to assure her. "Just tell me where…"

"Sarah, he's fighting Preston!" She yelled. "You have to get here, now! He's going to kill him!"

Sarah broke into a run, homing in on Preston's location. Watching her go, Victor started to run after her.

"Victor, what are you doing?" Monty screamed after him. "VICTOR!"

With that, Monty started running for all he was worth, desperate to catch up.

In another part of town, Sandy was cut off from Preston as she dealt with Basher Bots. She was fighting desperately to try and get to him to help, but the Basher Bots just seemed to keep coming, no matter how hard she fought.

Preston hit the ground and started crawling towards his fallen sword as his opponent stalked him. He brought one end of his lance down, right between Preston's hand and the sword. Preston didn't know if he should consider himself lucky his attacker hadn't taken his fingers, or if luck was nothing to do with the placement of the attack.

He flicked the sword away as he twirled the lance around, catching Preston under the chin and sending him up into the air. He caught him with the end, slamming him back down into the concrete, before backing of, giving Preston enough space and air to realise he was being outmanoeuvred. The man facing him was incredibly skilled, but also incredibly smart. He was analysing every move, forming a strategy with every second as he kept Preston immobilised.

"I don't get it. How could you do this?" Preston asked him. "You were one of us! You were a Ranger!"

"Yes, I was a Ranger, for all the good it did me." The warrior said as he paced around, keeping Preston in his view. "But when they were done with me, when I was the one that needed help, where were they? Where was the so-called power to protect me when I needed it?"

"I don't know what you're talking about…"

"I gave them everything they asked for and more!" He said resentfully as Preston tried to pull out his blaster. The warrior pulled his own, blasting it from Preston's hand with a precise shot that smashed his blaster into pieces. "Everyone always lauded the Red Ranger, or the Green Ranger or the White Ranger when he came along…none of them knew that most of the plans that won the day were MY plans! I was the one with the brains! I was the one that figured out what to do when everything went to shit!"

Preston started to get up, but the warrior caught him with a harsh kick to the chest, lifting him from the ground, before letting him fall back to the ground once more.

"When the time came there were only five spots, I did what was expected of me. I stepped aside, I gave the glory to the new kid, because I still believed in Zordon and his bullshit!" He continued. "Then it turns out because of the energies I absorbed to turn myself back into an adult, I was aging to death. Want to know what Zordon did? NOTHING!"

He grabbed Preston and hoisted him off the ground, leaving him dangling above the ground.

"I saved the world, saved my 'friends' asses more times than any of them could count, but when it came to me, it was 'Sorry Billy, sucks to be you!' and I was left to rot!" He told him. "Then Drakkon came, told me that I could regain my power, I could gain all the power I needed not to see myself age into dust in a matter of weeks. All I had to do was get my hands dirty a couple more times."

"So you sold out your friends to save your own ass." Preston replied as he reached behind him. Billy noticed this, and grabbed his wrist to stop him bringing up the weapon.

"I was solving interstellar problems before you were even shitting in your diaper." Billy said derisively. "What makes you think I can't foresee every thought in your head?"

"Oh, I've got no doubt you're smarter than me." Preston responded. "As for your little tale of woe? I couldn't care less!"

"What?" Billy snapped.

"Sometimes bad things happen!" Preston told him. "Sometimes, that's just the hand we're dealt!"

With that, he flexed his hand, spraying up the deck of cards he was holding. Billy's vision was obscured long enough for Preston to break out of his grip, leaping up and slamming both feet into his chest. Billy staggered away a little, and by the time he was ready, Preston had his morpher in bow mode.

Billy split his lance into two parts, throwing them straight for Preston. The first one made him dodge, spoiling his shot, but the other caught him square in the helmet, knocking him completely senseless. Billy started to come towards him, summoning his weapons back to his hands.

"You know, Drakkon only wanted the girl…but I guess he never specified if he minded if I took care of one of you wannabes on the way." Billy taunted him, reforming his Power Lance, raising it high over the prone Blue Ranger. "I did the whole ninja thing…let's see if you can at least die like…"

He was cut off as a blast hit him in the chest. He staggered as a few more hit home as Sarah arrived, using her Star Morpher bow to drive him backwards. Billy was on his knees by the time he drew his blaster, being able to finally return fire. There was a blast as both of their beams struck, creating a massive blast that ripped between the two sides.

Sarah, Preston and Sandy were on the ground, unmorphed, their ears ringing as Billy started to get to his feet. He was about to resume the attack when Cosmo teleported down with some more kudabots.

"Grab the girl!" He told them, pointing to Sandy. They all scrambled to try and fight as they grabbed Sandy, dragging her away.

Before they could take her away, there was a huge cry as Victor ran into the mix, throwing haymakers in all directions. It was a courageous, but ultimately fruitless battle. He managed to damage a couple of the robots, but before he could get too far, Cosmo drew his cane sword, levelling it at his throat.

"You…I remember you!" He declared with a sick smile.

"Yeah, I remember you too." Victor answered. "Nice squishy face if I recall."

"Yes, I remember all too well." Cosmo answered. "We'll take this one as well…the little one too!"

"NO!" Sarah screamed as she tried to get up, but Billy quickly forced her to get her head down with some shots from his blaster. The kudabots dragged Sandy, Victor and Monty away.

"Consider this getting your attention." Cosmo declared. "Every two hours until we get an answer, some of my friends will come down to take more citizens of Summer Cove. Sooner or later we'll find someone you care about."

"Give me back my sister!" Emma yelled, only to be silenced as Billy aimed the blaster at her.

"SARAH!" Victor called out. "It's alright…it'll be OK."

With that, they disappeared. Sarah, Preston and Emma all looked to each other as their defeat overtook them.

"Great, that's what just one of these guys can do and he isn't even Drakkon." Preston commented. "What are we going to do? We have to get Sandy back!"

"Drakkon's not playing games." Sarah stated. "We can't afford to either."

She got onto her communicator, calling the others.

"Guys, its Sarah." She told them. "We need to get to the Command Centre now."

Up on the Warrior Dome, Billy, Cosmo and the kudabots dragged their prisoners before Drakkon. He sat on his throne, gazing down on them all.

"This is rather more than I expected, Billy." Drakkon drawled casually.

"It wasn't my choice." Billy told him. "And I prefer Will…"

"Of course, Will." He said, beckoning to some kudabots. "Bring the girl closer, I want to get a good look at her."

Sandy dragged her heels as they dragged her towards him, but it made little difference. All it earned her was a few stray punches to get her to comply. Drakkon held up a hand.

"That's close enough!" He called out a little forcefully. He inspected her thoughtfully. "I have to admit, when I was still stuck in the Morphing Grid, drifting between existence and nothingness, coming up with this plan, I thought of almost all eventualities…though curiously you were never one of them."

"I see you never considered a hairstylist either." She responded. His two female followers laughed a little, something that didn't seem to amuse Drakkon in the slightest.

"I had to re-tool some of my plans to accommodate you." He admitted. "I was hoping my assassin, my Green Psycho Ranger would pave the way for my arrival, though it seems he fell somewhat short of the mark."

"The others destroyed him, just like they're going to destroy all of you!" Sandy yelled at him. "Now if you're planning on killing me then go ahead! I'll make sure I do as much damage to you and this ship as I can on the way out!"

"You are a spirited one aren't you?" He asked her. "I can see why Psycho Green's power was drawn to you."

She just looked at him wide-eyed as he said this.

"What? You don't think I recognise the power of my chief assassin?" He asked her. "It is clear that when the Nexus Prism chose you, it had something very special planned for you. It's almost a shame you won't get to live up to it."

"I don't give a shit about Psycho Green's power, or whatever sick ego trip you're on." She said as tears started running down her face. "I…I…I just want to get back to my family."

"God, really? THIS is who Psycho Green's power chose?" One of Drakkon's followers demanded. "Screw this, I'm taking that power for myself right…"

"JASON!" Drakkon barked, halting him in his tracks. He glared at him. "Do not touch her!"

Jason just rolled his eyes as he returned to his position, taking a seat by some snacks and started to eat. Drakkon just considered Sandy thoughtfully as he saw the tears in her eyes. He could see fear, but also defiance. He also saw something else.

"You…you have no idea what power you wield do you?" He asked her.

"Lightning." She declared. "Well…when it works anyway. I haven't had much chance to…"

"I don't know what's sadder. The fact you possess this power or the fact you don't even know what you possess." He commented. He gestured to the kudabots. "Take her away, find a cell for her. Ensure she is watched at all times!"

As they took her away, he turned his attention to Victor and Monty.

"Now, I did ask for the girl." He began. "But I'm still struggling to understand why these two are here."

"My liege, if you will indulge me for a moment." Cosmo said, falling to his knees before him and bowing so low his forehead touched the floor. "These humans have caused me far more trouble than it would appear. They were instrumental in causing the damage to my ship that left me stranded!"

"You're still mad about the ship?" Victor teased him. "I thought you'd be angrier about the fact I busted your face!"

There was a laugh from those assembled in the room. Cosmo scrambled to his feet, and crossed over to Victor, getting right into his face.

"You have no idea how long I've imagined this." Cosmo told him. He returned back to Drakkon. "My Lord, I know you have been more than generous, but for the crimes these humans have committed against me, and by extension you, I beg your indulgence. Let me have them!"

"Them?" One of them asked, an axe materialising in his hand. "You want this taken care of I can…"

"Zack, I appreciate your enthusiasm but…I'm curious." Drakkon said, looking to Cosmo. "What exactly do you want?"

"This one would make a fine slave. He's got enough technical knowledge to help the production staff." He said, looking to Monty. "But this one…"

He pointed to Victor.

"I'm planning to make him part of your victory games." Cosmo told him. "Call it a…warm-up match if you will."

"And who exactly would you have him fight?" Drakkon asked. Cosmo just grinned.

"For the satisfaction of getting my hands on him, I'll return to the arena." Cosmo assured him. "For one night only."

"For all your help…consider it done." Drakkon answered.

"Take this one to a supervisor and get him put to work." Cosmo instructed the kudabots, pointing to Monty. They dragged him away, leaving him with Victor. "As for this one, take him to a cell. Make sure he's nice and comfortable."


	31. Drakkon's Rangers

The Rangers returned to the base much sooner than expected. They'd always planned to meet up well before the deadline once they'd all rested up a bit so they could figure out what they could do about the latest and most powerful threat they were facing. Unfortunately it looked like after however many years Drakkon had been drifting in limbo, he was not patient.

He'd given them 24 hours to answer his demand that they had over their Power Stars, the Super Ninja Steel and the Nexus Prism, but since he had already sent one of his minions to shake things up, he'd given them the additional stipulation that just to make sure they were taking him seriously, he was going to send one of his minions to the city every two hours to round up hostages. He'd already taken Sandy, Victor and Monty, and the clock was ticking until he'd send the next of his minions down to claim more.

Levi was trying to comfort Emma, who was at a loss as to what to do. She didn't have a clue what she could tell her parents about where her sister was, and she wasn't in a position to do anything to get her back. Sarah and Preston were getting patched up after their encounter with his first lieutenant. The mood in the Command Centre was building to something, but most prominently the emotions running highest were frustration and hopelessness.

"So, from your description I've confirmed that it is Billy Cranston." Mick answered. "Well, a version of him at least. According to the records Tommy left us, he was the original Blue Ranger all the way back in Angel Grove."

"He kept talking about how his team abandoned him, about how he was aging too quickly or something." Preston informed them as Redbot checked him out.

"Well, here on our Earth, Billy did artificially age himself after the team was turned into children." Mick stated, checking the records. "But according to this, he went to Aquitar for treatment. He's still living there with his wife."

"Apparently that didn't happen in his reality." Sarah told them. "Now, he seems to have his own flashy set of mash-up powers now."

"It sure didn't look like his original suit." Preston agreed.

"As near as I can tell, it looks like he's merged the powers of his original power coin with the powers of the Phantom Ranger." Brody said, gesturing to an image of the new Ranger suit he was wearing.

"If he's got two sets of powers…"

"At least." Calvin interjected. They all went silent for a minute. It was bad enough with him possibly having at least double the power any of them had without making it any worse, but unfortunately none of them could fault his reasoning.

"So, now they're stronger than us, more experienced than us and they know every trick in our book." Hayley summarised. "So where does that leave us?"

"We tear up the book and start again." Brody answered truthfully. "First thing's first, we have to try and isolate them, take them one at a time rather than face them as a team. If we just run head first straight at them, then we're only going to get our heads caved in."

"So, anyone any suggestions?" Levi asked. They all looked around for a few moments, before coming to rest on Sarah. She was usually one of the first ones to come up with an idea. However, as they were staring at her hopefully, her mind just registered nothing but white noise. She just shrugged and shook her head, looking away.

"Alright, we've got a little while until the next deadline." Brody replied. "We'll keep an eye on the scanners, see where they come down. We'll defend what we can, but if they only send one like they did the last time, I say we take the opportunity to mug the hell out of them."

"That's it?" Calvin asked. "That's our plan?"

"Hey, if anyone's got anything better I am all for it." Brody admitted. "But right now we have to play smart. Full-on face-to-face isn't likely to end well, so we stick and run and make it count where we can."

"Alright, guys…I've been working on something I think might just help." Mick told them. "Levi…come with me. Um…best bring the first-aid kit."

As they left, the others started to split off to prepare in their own way. Emma was going on the computers, trying to find out everything she could about the original team. The others thought they had recognised Drakkon's followers when they first appeared, and with them confirming that one of them was indeed another version of Billy Cranston, it seemed likely that Drakkon had reformed a version of his original team with those he had somehow managed to convince or coerce into serving him as his own Ranger elite shock troops. There was no telling what differences had occurred between their own dimensions and wherever the others came from that led them to follow Drakkon, but there had to at least be some similarities.

Preston was staying with Emma, trying to help her with her research. Both of them cared deeply for Sandy, and were desperate to do anything to get her back.

Hayley took comfort from Kody. Normally she'd have been with Calvin, but things were still tense between them. Sarah could never have imagined seeing them breaking up. She was convinced that she would end up at their wedding sooner or later. Calvin went with Levi, Brody and Mick to help them, which left her to her own thoughts.

She wished Victor hadn't followed them. She knew he was brave, a complete idiot, but brave to a fault. He was no doubt trying to help them, but in the process had only managed to get himself taken as a hostage. She started chewing her nails, trying to imagine what they might be doing to him. It wasn't as though Cosmo didn't have reason to dislike him. Victor and Monty had been the ones that caused the damage to his ship that left them all stranded in space.

She couldn't bring herself to think of what had become of them. Brody and Mick had told her many horror stories of how people were treated on the Warrior Dome and that was people who hadn't all but destroyed the ship. She leaned back against the wall, looking up to the roof, remembering seeing Victor being taken, of him telling her that he believed in her and that things would be alright.

"Victor, that makes one of us." She sighed.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Monty came into the throne room, balancing a tray of drinks on each hand and another on his head. Cosmo had put him to work, and his new masters had been very quick to torment him.

"Hey, you got that root beer?" Zack asked as Monty tried to control everything he was carrying.

"Uh…I've…um…its right…on this tray." He said as he lowered his head. Zack took the glass and took a long sip, before spitting it all over the floor. "You call this chilled?"

"I…I brought it from the kitchen as fast as I…"

"Don't you know how to make iced tea?" Kimberly asked, dropping her glass on the floor. "Clean that up!"

"Of course, I'll just put this down and…"

"Say, weren't you supposed to be bringing pizza pockets?" Jason asked. Monty put down all he was carrying and ran out of the room as they laughed.

"So, as much fun as all this is, are we really just waiting for the new kids to decide whether or not they're giving up?" Jason asked.

"I gave my word to the people of Summer Cove." Drakkon reminded him.

"So?" Trini asked. "What does this dump matter? Somewhere down there is the power to make the multiverse the way it should be."

"Finally all this power will be good for something." Zack said as he started looking through the drinks Monty had brought. "But you know those kids won't just give up the Prism right?"

"I know we wouldn't have." Kimberly said, pacing the room. "If there's one thing that's consistent across all dimensions it's that Rangers are definitely a stubborn breed."

"Of course, I just have to give them a while to figure out that they're outmatched. A few more incursions should demonstrate that their efforts are futile." Drakkon told them. "No doubt they'll already be working on some kind of trick or scheme so that when the deadline comes, they can stand defiant."

"So why don't we just take them now?" Zack asked him in response. "We know they're not going to give up."

"But we have to let them put on the show. I wouldn't be surprised if they make a show of surrendering and then try to spring some kind of trap." Drakkon announced. "When they do, we'll be able to defeat the Nexus Prism's last line of defence in front of the whole city."

"Speaking of which, it's nearly time for another demonstration." Jason stated. "So whose turn is it this time?"

"Since you seem to be so restless, how about you burn some of that excess energy?" Drakkon asked him. "Oh, but Kim, would you mind going with him? There's not much point going to collect hostages if your man levels the city in the process."

"Sounds like fun." Kimberly replied, getting up from her seat. "Come on, let's show the newbies how out of their depth they really are."

Back at the Ranger Base, Levi came into the lab, looking decidedly less than happy. Brody, Mick and Calvin were a little way behind him.

"OK, OK, I'm sorry, but that attempt didn't work either." Mick replied. "But I think I've figured out just how to tweak it…"

"Mick, I was on fire!" Levi reminded him. "ON FIRE!"

"Well, yes…that was less than ideal." Mick stammered. "But we nearly got there and…"

"Mick, I can still smell my hair burning." Levi commented. "I'm going for a shower."

"Levi, LEVI!" He called out as the Gold Ranger left. Calvin just went to the corner to go and get himself a drink. Hayley took the opportunity to go over to him to try and clear the air.

"Cal, can…can we talk?" She asked him.

"I'm not sure now's the best time for personal dramas." Calvin told her.

"Cal, not to put too fine a point on it but there might not be a later." She said to him a little more honestly than she really wanted to.

"You think we're going to lose?" He asked her.

"No…I hope not." Hayley replied sadly. "But if, you know, something bad happens and one of us doesn't come back, I'd hate to think we didn't get the chance to talk about this."

Calvin couldn't fault her logic on the situation. There were no guarantees, especially against an enemy with the destructive power of Drakkon's Rangers. He took a seat with her as she prepared to begin.

"Cal, you know I didn't want to hurt you. I'd never want to do anything to hurt you." Hayley began, trying to find the words to explain to him why she had told his parents about his decision. "I know how tough you found things here at school. You think you were the only one that felt it when you got those tests back? Every time I looked at your face whenever you got one of those grades hit me too. When you decided to quit school, I just…I was worried you were doing it for all the wrong reasons."

"Hayls, it wasn't your place to tell them." Calvin told her.

"I know, and I know it hurt but…I didn't know how to tell you that it doesn't matter if you do great at school or if you go on to do some other courses or…"

"It was my choice to make!" Calvin reminded her.

"I know, and I'm sorry." She said softly. "Cal, I don't care if you end up a mechanic or a surgeon or one of those guys that stands on street corners twirling a sign that advertises condos. I love you."

"But you still went behind my back, you didn't respect my decision." Calvin reminded her. "Do you know what that feels like?"

"Cal, I didn't mean…"

"Hayley, don't tell me what you did and didn't mean, the fact you couldn't accept my decision says everything that needs to be said." Calvin interrupted her. "You know, I never cared what people thought of me. I know people don't think I'm the funniest guy in the world, or the smartest, or the most interesting or the best looking…but the one thing that mattered to me was that you did. But after this…you've just said you agree with all of them. It feels like you don't see me as a boyfriend, you see me as a kid, or…or a pet."

"Cal, that's not true!"

"But it's what it feels like!" Calvin answered. "And I don't know if I can get over that."

Just then, the alarm sounded. The team assembled in the middle of the lab, checking the monitors.

"Well, it looks like times up." Mick told them. "It looks like Jason and Kimberly are rounding up folks on Woodrow."

"That's only a couple of blocks from here." Brody answered. "Come on guys, let's show them what happens when they mess with our city!"

Over in a street a little way from the school, Kimberly and Jason were overseeing the Kudabots as they broke into houses, dragging people from their homes and rounding them up to be taken to the Warrior Dome.

"You know, it's at times like this I'm glad we ditched Maligore." Kimberly commented. "This is a lot more fun than his crew ever was."

"HEY!" Brody called out as the team arrived, morphed and ready for action. "These people have done nothing to you!"

"And that matters because…why?" Kimberly mocked them, before laughing. Jason came up beside her, at which they strode out towards the Rangers.

"Is this where you offer us the chance to give up before…?" Jason asked, before recoiling as a blast flashed out, burning his right cheek. He held his hand to it, before glaring at Brody, whose blaster was still smoking.

"No, we're just going to kick your asses instead!" He called out. Jason and Kimberly went for their morphers, dark energy shimmering around them as they sprinted at the Rangers. Jason's suit was red, with a large, crested helmet, bearing a Kanji symbol as the visor. He had a large, golden chest piece over the top of it, bearing Egyptian looking symbols. A large bastard sword appeared in his hand, with a long blade, etched with intricate designs and a hand guard that mirrored the kanji symbol on his helmet.

Kimberly's outfit was predominantly pink, but had a helmet with a long crest at the top, and large, white shoulder pads with spikes coming from them. Up the length of her sleeves and her legs, there were diamond patters. She had a large, feather-like sword hanging at her hip, while a bow appeared in her hand.

"You're gonna pay for that!" Jason yelled at him. "I'm going to flay you alive!"

Up on the Warrior Dome, Victor was in a cell, chained to the wall with only a screen for entertainment. On it, he was seeing the battle unfolding. Cosmo came in, grinning in a sinister manner.

"So, what do you think of the show so far?" He asked.

"I think the writing team could do with being replaced." Victor replied sarcastically. "Not to mention the show runner clearly has no idea what the audience wants."

Cosmo knocked the wind out of him with a punch to the gut, which Victor was unable to do anything to stop. He gasped hard, trying to get some breath back into his body.

"You know, you're a lot stronger than you look for a little guy." Victor wheezed.

"Yes, I am rather deceptive aren't I?" He asked as he started pacing. "I mean…you really do still believe that punch of yours meant anything at all don't you?"

"Maybe it made you a little better-looking?" Victor suggested. Cosmo hit him again. Victor's eyes bulged out as he felt the force of the blow.

"My dear boy, I wasn't always a promoter. But if my fancy clothes and outlandish personality give people the impression I'm someone not to be taken too seriously, then that just serves my purposes."

He drew in closer.

"I let you get that punch in. I let you think I was just some fop that you brushed aside as you set up Galvanax for destruction." He revealed. "Galvanax was long past his sell-by date, and I was hoping you'd get rid of Odious for me too. All to pave the way for the real power in this and all other realities."

"So, you sold everyone you knew out, is that it?" Victor asked him. "So, what do you get in response?"

"Exclusive broadcasting rights across the multiverse." Cosmo declared. "Soon, I will be the creative mind behind the greatest show in…"

"Wait, you're going to be the ONLY broadcaster?" Victor asked, before he started laughing.

"What? What are you laughing at?" Cosmo asked him. "Stop that! Stop laughing!"

"You…you want to be the only broadcaster? THAT'S your ambition?" Victor laughed. "Do you have any idea how much that's going to suck?"

"I'll have the greatest shows across the length and breadth of the universe!" Cosmo declared. "Everyone will see my face…"

"Because there'll be nothing else!" Victor interrupted him. "If you have no one to compete against, what are your ratings going to mean? Jack shit! What are your shows going to be like when you don't have to compete to be better or more creative than anyone else?"

"I'll…I'll…"

"Dude, one of the things that drives shows to get better is the drive to take chances, to make leaps that no one else will!" Victor told him. "When you don't have anyone else to compete against? You might have the ratings, but when you know you haven't earned them…how much are you really going to enjoy it?"

Cosmo started huffing loudly, before letting out a huge yell and punching Victor straight across the jaw. He shook out his hand.

"When I get you in the arena I'm going to make you squeal like a hog in front of the entire universe!" He screamed, before storming out as Victor started laughing. When he left though, he slumped down in his chains and started panting for breath.

Back down on Earth, the battle was raging in the street. Between the kudabots and the two veteran Rangers, the team had their hands well and truly full. Kimberly flipped nimbly away from Calvin and Preston as they fired energy arrows at her.

"Cute trick." She taunted them, before several energy arrows appeared in her bow as she somersaulted through their volley. She let fly, sending them straight at them, knocking both of them down. "Pity I was doing it before you two were able to spell the word 'arrow'."

Jason was locked in a deadly back and forth with Levi and Brody on either side of him. He wasn't a ninja, but even as a kid, he already had three black belts by the time he was in Senior Year. The power of his armour more than made up for any blows the two managed to get through his guard as he swung to either side. He finally managed to get the better of them, sending them sprawling.

"You two are good." Jason commented. "But not good enough."

"Jason!" Kimberly called him, gesturing to her communicator. "Drakkon wants these hostages."

"Sorry, looks like we have to cut playtime short." Jason said with a shrug, turning to walk away. "Alright, teleport all of these up to the…"

He was cut off as he was knocked to the ground by some blasts. He started to get up, seeing Levi holding his Rockstorm Blaster on him.

"Did you seriously just…?" He asked. "Get them up to the ship!"

The kudabots teleported out with the rest of the hostages, while Jason and Kimberly faced down the team. Kimberly pulled out her Drago Sword, creating energy arrows in the air. She cast them all straight up, at which Jason leapt into the air, spinning like a cyclone, charging them up with golden light, before casting them all down with his sword.

The team all hit the ground and de-morphed. Jason just started laughing as he re-joined Kimberly.

"Nice try kids, this was kind of fun." Jason told them. "Now I'm kind of hoping you don't surrender."

"Later." Kimberly said with a little wave as they both powered down, before teleporting away. Brody started to get up, clutching his head.

"Damn, that was…is everyone OK?" He asked.

"I'll tell you once I stop seeing three of everything." Preston answered.

"Uh…guys?" Hayley asked. "There's one thing I'm not seeing three of…or even one of."

They all started looking around, before they finally realised what she was meaning.

"Uh…guys?" Calvin asked. "Has anyone seen Sarah?"


	32. A REALLY Bad Idea

On the Warrior Dome, Jason and Kimberly returned from their successful battle with the Rangers, bringing their hostages with them. Cosmo struggled to try and get to them as the throng of people was marched down the corridor. A few tried to resist, but they were quickly brought back into line by the Kudabots.

"Take the hostages to holding." Jason ordered them, gesturing down the hall. "Anyone gives you any grief, kill them and the person either side of them."

"Hey, what gives?" Cosmo asked as he saw the number of people being marched towards holding. "I know you were getting hostages, but…is this really necessary?"

"I don't know. Drakkon asked us to bring hostages, we brought hostages." Kimberly replied with a shrug. "He didn't tell us how many, just told us to pick up more every two hours. He figures that we keep picking people up, eventually we'll get someone the Rangers care about."

"But…there are so many!" He complained. "If you pick up this many every two hours, do you know how long it'll take to completely fill holding?"

"If you have a problem with it, you can always talk to Drakkon." Jason suggested.

"Fine, fine." Cosmo sighed. "I have a bout to get ready for anyway. But those prisoners are YOUR responsibility."

With that, he scurried off to get ready for his bout. Kimberly just smirked and shook her head.

"He's an idiot." She commented. "A useful idiot, but an idiot nonetheless."

"Aren't they all?" Jason replied, waving to the kudabots. "Get those prisoners to holding. If I see one prisoner out here after that, there'll be hell to pay!"

As they departed, the kudabots continued to march the prisoners down the corridor towards holding. There was a bump as someone in the line tried to break loose, but the kudabots were quickly on top of the trouble maker, making an example of him. They didn't notice as a prisoner in a black hoodie slipped away from the crowd in the confusion. Getting out of sight, Sarah pulled down her hood and took a deep breath. She dared to have a look around, but was thankful the kudabots didn't follow through on Jason's threat. She had slipped into the group of prisoners to get onto the ship, but although she needed to keep things quiet, she couldn't just stand by and watch them murder three people. Clearly, they felt like they had it under control.

"OK, Sarah, stage one, you're on the ship." She said to herself. "Stage two, don't get killed!"

With that, she took a look around, before heading down a corridor.

Back in the Ranger Base, the team returned from their beating at the hands of Drakkon's Rangers. Brody kicked some spare parts across the room in frustration.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Mick protested. "Look, I know things are going badly but that's no reason to mess up my stuff!"

"Going badly?" Brody asked him. "We've faced those guys twice and so far, we're down two Rangers to their none!"

"OK, maybe badly isn't the right adjective." Mick mused as he thought about it. "But…could you not kick more of my stuff around the place? I have things in kind of an order…"

There was a loud crash from behind him, at which he sighed.

"And it sounds like that's my washers." He complained.

"Mick, they're picking us apart." Calvin ranted. "They're going to keep coming to Earth every two hours to pick up more hostages until the deadline. God only knows what they're going to do with them in the meantime!"

"Not to mention that with at least two power sets apiece, those guys are seriously kicking our tails!" Hayley added dejectedly. "That's before Drakkon and his God only knows how many powers sets foot on the field."

"Come on guys, we can't give up." Emma told them. "They've got Sandy and Sarah…"

Just then, one of the screens burst into life.

"Did someone just turn on…?"

"Don't look at me." Levi said as the screen started to come into focus. It took a moment, but eventually they all saw Sarah on the screen. The camera was a little shaky, like she was holding it herself.

"Um…hey, guys." She began. "OK, this is going to be a little tough to explain, and you're really not going to like it, which is why I didn't tell you before I did this but…if this video is playing, then someone's just said my name and if I'm not there, then I'm on the Warrior Dome."

"Wait, Sarah knew she was going to be kidnapped?" Preston asked.

"OK, so here's the thing, I've not been kidnapped per se, but more I kind of…allowed myself to be taken." She continued. Preston got a little shudder as he heard her say this. It was a recording so realistically she wasn't actually answering him, but they were so close, it was like she had pre-empted his question. "I kind of…slipped into the group of prisoners so that I would be taken up to the ship."

"Oh shit." Brody groaned.

"Look, I…I can't explain right now, but…we can't just sit here and let Drakkon send his goons to take pot-shots at us so I'm going to find a way to weaken his position up here if I can." She explained. "I…um…I just…I…I needed to do something."

"What the hell is she thinking?" Levi asked. "She went up there all by herself?"

"I know right now you guys are probably cussing me out and I don't blame you for a minute, but…there are people we care about up here and I figure we need to find a way to take the fight to Drakkon, it'll be the last thing he expects." She continued. "I'll try to find a way to raise as much of a ruckus up here as I can. I can't tell you what the signal is, because…well…I haven't figured that part out either but you'll know it when you see it. Until then, in order to keep under the radar, I'm turning off my communicator and I can't risk morphing because they'll be able to track me. Guess now we find out how much I've learned in those ninja lessons, huh Brody?"

She took a deep breath and stared into the camera.

"I'm sorry for the solo act guys, but…I…I just had to." She told them. "Maybe you can forgive me if I survive?"

With that, the video cut out. Everyone just stared at each other.

"Sarah went to the ship all by herself?" Preston asked.

"Yeah, I know, it's insane…"

"No, I mean she didn't take me with her!" Preston protested. "Sandy's up there!"

"Not the point Brody was trying to make I think." Hayley answered.

"Whatever Sarah's up to, I hope it works out." Brody told them. "In the meantime, I really hope we think of something, otherwise when those Rangers come back, we're going to be in for a really short fight."

Back up on the Warrior Dome, Monty was heading along one of the corridors, his pockets stuffed with tools and his arms full of machinery. He was muttering to himself, recounting his task list, which seemed to be growing by the second, trying to remember all the odd jobs he was being given.

He was grabbed from behind and dragged into a corner.

"Please, don't eat me!" He screamed out. "I taste awful! And I'm all bone and…MMMPHHH!"

A hand was clamped over his mouth, silencing him at which Sarah whispered in his ear.

"Monty, it's me!" She told him. Once he settled down, she released him.

"Sarah?" He asked. "You guys are here?"

"Uh…kind of." She said uneasily. "It's more of a one-person thing?"

"Oh." He commented. "Well, no doubt you have some kind of weapon or gadget or…"

"Monty, I need you to focus." She told him, trying to get him to concentrate on the task at hand. She didn't want to tell him that she had come onto the ship with pretty much no idea what to do once she was actually there. "Where's Victor?"

"Victor?"

"Monty, where is he?" She asked him a little more forcefully. Monty gulped.

"He's in styling." He told her. "It's what they call the holding area for fighters."

"Fighters?" She asked.

"Cosmo's going to be fighting him in kind of a warm-up before Drakkon's guys take on you guys." Monty told her. Sarah released him from her grip, looking away from him as all sorts of horrible thoughts came to her. Cosmo had never been one to get his hands dirty if he could help it, but he had shown on a couple of occasions he had a few tricks under that top hat of his. She also sincerely doubted that Cosmo would risk his own ass in anything approaching a fair fight. If he was going to take on Victor then no doubt, he had already figured out at least a couple of dozen ways to tip the scales in his favour. Victor had been instrumental in the humiliation of Cosmo during their battle with Galvanax, and she didn't doubt he wanted payback. Victor had offered himself up as a distraction, but it was a decision that was going to get him killed.

"Sarah?" Monty asked her.

"Monty, do you know where they're keeping Emma?" Sarah asked him.

"She's down in holding, in solitary." He told her. "In fact, it's really weird, they're keeping her away from everyone, almost like they're afraid of her."

"Right, yeah, um…" She said, trying to get her thoughts back on the task at hand. "Um…Monty, you know how Cosmo's teleporter works don't you?"

"I do." He answered.

"Alright, then I just need a way to distract everyone long enough for you to get everyone off the ship." She mused. "Try to spring Sandy, she should be able to help you get the others to safety. OK, thanks Monty."

"Wait!" He called after her. "Where are the others?"

"They'll be along shortly?" She asked with a little bit of a cringe. Monty's expression indicated he didn't believe this for a moment. "OK, this is more of a solo mission. Look, just try not to be noticed and make sure there's a path from holding to the teleporter. Once I figure out some kind of distraction you're going to have to move fast."

"What's the signal?" He asked her.

"I'm still working on it." She said a little too honestly. "Just…uh…you'll figure it out!"

As she ran off, heading in the direction of the styling department, Monty just smiled.

"Sorry Cosmo, looks like I'm handing in my notice." He commented as he ran off to try and figure out a way to help out.

Back down on Earth, the rest of the team were trying to figure out what to do. Now that they knew Sarah was on the ship, they were at a loss to try and figure out how to help her.

"Any luck hacking in?" Mick asked Emma.

"It's going to take a while, but I've not met a firewall yet I couldn't get through." She told him. "Let's just say I'm glad juvenile records are expunged when you turn 18."

"I still can't believe Sarah did this." Brody stated. "I mean, she's in there all alone against everything they've got!"

"To be fair, we didn't know she was there until she told us so…with any luck they won't know either."

"We should find a way up there." Brody declared. "The Astro Zord, we could…"

"The Astro Zord would probably be detected. They learned their lesson when it sprung me." Levi responded. "They'll be looking for any kind of direct assault."

"So, we're meant to just sit here and do nothing?" Hayley asked.

"Anything we do now will only arouse their suspicion that something's not right." Mick said sagely. "Brody, you know more about the ways of the ninja better than anyone, the last thing we want is to draw attention to the fact that things aren't going exactly as they expect them to."

"So, in the meantime we just sit here and act like we're whipped?" Calvin asked. "That should be simple enough."

"I don't like it any more than you guys do." Mick told them. "But right now, the only thing between Sarah and a very violent end is the fact that as far as we know no one else knows she's on that ship."

"Well, at very least we can prepare for their next little shopping trip." Preston said, checking his watch. "The next deadline is in an hour."

"Then that's one hour to start preparing." Brody told them. "Come on guys, we might be waiting for them to hit us, but that doesn't mean we can't make it hurt when they do."

Back up on the Warrior Dome, Monty approached the solitary cells. It wasn't too hard to find the one Sandy was in, it was the only one with guards outside it. Two kudabots were standing by the door, ready to keep anyone away.

Monty had never been a fighter, most of his time had been spent actively trying to avoid fights whenever he could. He'd love to say it was for philosophical reasons, like he was a pacifist or something like that but the truth was ever since Kindergarten he'd always been small, uncoordinated and kind of weak for his age. He was the only kind in High School that actually got bullied by kids younger than him. Still, given the number of times the Rangers had saved him and the enormity of the task ahead of Sarah, he was willing to play whatever part he could in the plan.

He took a screwdriver out of his pocket and tossed it down the hall. Both the kudabots reacted to the noise, turning to see what had caused it. He took a hammer and a wrench out of his overalls and ran down the hall, hitting each of them across the back of the head with a rather uneventful clang. He gulped as he realised neither of them had gone down, and had barely flinched at all. He let out a shriek as they both turned towards him, levelling their weapons at him. He fell to the floor in panic just as they opened fire, but because he had ducked, they missed him and hit each other. He finally opened one eye, finding that if he was in the afterlife it looked a hell of a lot like the Warrior Dome. Seeing the smoking wreckage of the two kudabots, he got up and dusted himself off.

"OK, I totally meant that." He lied. "Now, let's see…I think this should do it…"

He unlocked the door, and began dragging in one of the kudabots. Sandy looked up at him.

"Monty?" She asked. "How…how did you…?"

"Sandy, we need to get out of here!" He told her. "Sarah's on the ship, she's going to create a diversion, but we need to get the prisoners to the teleporter and get them the hell out of here."

"That…sounds like a Sarah plan." She said, nodding her head. "Any idea how we should proceed?"

"So far dumb luck seems to be working." Monty replied in a manner that didn't inspire a lot of confidence. Sandy just rolled her eyes.

"Well, at least one of us is a ninja." She told him. Monty just looked to her a little sceptically.

"Didn't your sister teach you everything you know from books?" He asked.

"Between the two of us, which one do you think has the most experience?" She responded. Monty just nodded in agreement.

"OK, point well made." He answered. "You lead the way."

Sandy checked each way down the hall before moving. Monty closed the cell door behind him and followed her, hoping that it would be at least a little while before anyone checked the cell and realised Sandy was missing.

On another part of the ship, Sarah was looking around, frantically trying to find Victor. She finally found the styling department. Many of the warriors that came to the Warrior Dome already had their own gimmicks. Their own style of clothing, weaponry and suchlike, but not every fighter did. Especially those just starting out often took a while to find the image that worked for them, not to mention not every participant, particularly in the lower down matches was exactly a willing participant.

Victor was shackled to the wall while a curious looking alien was rummaging through an assortment of clothing and armour to find something for Victor to wear for his match with Cosmo.

"Now, we do have a nice frame to work with. Tall, broad shoulders…yes, I think some nice shoulder pads would be a good look for you." The stylist said as he was looking through. "Any idea what kind of weapon you'll be given?"

"I was hoping maybe a machine gun?" Victor asked hopefully. The stylist started laughing.

"Oh, no my dear boy, that would never do." He said. "Hmm…Let's see what we have to work with."

He grabbed Victor's shirt, ripping it off and exposing his torso. He then grabbed his jeans, yanking them down, leaving him standing in only his boxers.

"This is hardly dignified." Victor complained.

"Oh, there's no shame in the style business." The stylist responded. "Hmm…quite a few bruises, we'll have to cover those up. Can't have anyone saying the fight isn't fair. I mean, it won't be but…no reason the audience needs to know that, right?"

There was a huge clang, at which the stylist fell to the floor. Sarah was standing behind him, holding a metal club she'd taken from the table full of weapons. She tossed it aside.

"Sarah!" Victor called out. "You guys made it!"

"Uh…yeah, something like that." Sarah responded, looking to Victor. "Cosmo really went to work on you."

"It's nothing." He lied. "I mean…I got worse from football."

"These ribs look like they've been cracked." Sarah said, running her fingers over them. She could see the pained look one his face as she touched them. She got right up on her tip-toes, reaching as high as she could, pressing her lips to his. Her power flared up, at which Victor's wounds started to heal as she drew them into herself. As she parted from him, she grabbed her ribs and looked away from him.

"Sarah, what…?"

"Fringe benefit of the Ninja Steel." She told him. "Although…right now it doesn't feel like so much of a benefit."

"So, you can heal people if you kiss them?" He asked. She suddenly realised what she had done.

"Uh…yeah…absolutely." She rushed out. "That's…that's totally why I did that…um…ow."

"Sarah, you need to get me out of these." Victor told her. Sarah went to the stylist and started rummaging through his clothes. Unfortunately, it didn't look like he had the keys. She started looking around for something to pick the lock with, finding a needle. She took it and started to work on trying to pick the lock on his manacles.

"Don't worry, I've done this…at least a couple of times." She assured him. "So, how are you feeling now?"

"Pretty good." Victor answered. "You?"

"I heal up pretty fast." She assured him. "Damn it, this is taking a whole lot longer than I expected. I need something a little sturdier than this needle."

"How about this?" She heard from behind her, ducking just in time as a dagger flew past her head, lodging in the wall. Sarah looked up to see Trini standing behind her. "Well, well…look what we have here."

"Um…this isn't what it looks like." Sarah said, gesturing between herself and Victor, before internally kicking herself. "Right…not really the point."

"You know, if you're that impatient to die…"

Sarah grabbed a handful of clothes from one of the racks and threw them straight in Trini's face, before shoving her to the floor and running out of the room. She stopped in the door, considering trying to get Victor loose.

"GO!" Victor yelled at her.

"But…"

"You die, we BOTH die!" He interrupted her. "GO!"

Reluctantly, Sarah took to heel and ran. Trini finally disentangled herself and got up, completely enraged.

"Oh, I am so going to take my time with you!" She snarled as she started to give chase.


	33. Stumbling Through The Plan

In his throne room, Drakkon was keeping an eye on the time. The Rangers continued to show him no respect by refusing to acknowledge his deadline and indicate their intent to surrender. In a lot of ways, he already knew they wouldn't. While the Morphing Grid was sometimes mysterious and sometimes made some questionable decisions in who it chose to wield its power, with everything from Jason, a kid from a military family with a strong discipline who had excelled in sports and Martial Arts and been captains in teams all his life who was almost a cliché in how custom-made he seemed to be to the role, so some kid who made the most laughably awful collection agent for a protection racket that ever walked the Earth, but there were a few things that were consistent among all of them. One of those was that they never gave up, even right to the bitter end.

There was no mortal being that knew the Morphing Grid like Drakkon by now. He had been infused with so much of its power, and even traversed the grid itself for so long that he was the closest thing any human would ever come to being one with the Morphing Grid itself. It was the fact that he was close but hadn't managed it that still burned in his soul even now.

He had drifted in a limbo of sorts following his last defeat, not quite gone, his will too strong to simply fade away and disappear into the energy of the Grid. He had been so close he could taste it. He had actually started to accomplish his dream, to shape reality itself to his whims, only to have it taken away from him at the last moment, a tiny shred of doubt being just enough to allow the will of other Rangers to come for him and end his reign. He had long since cast off that doubt, and was not going to allow another team to finish him off again. He had literally existed through sheer force of will alone. No, the Power most certainly did not tolerate cowards.

He watched the time ticking down towards his next deadline, when he would once more send his followers to gather more hostages. The Rangers were bound to be in the middle of some scheme or other, aiming to pull some kind of trick to best them. However, long before his team were the scourge of multiple realities, they were Rangers, and so they all knew what to expect. A little smirk crossed his face as he recalled their days fighting 'The Good Fight', and some of the ridiculous schemes they had not only come up with, but that remarkably actually worked. He was just recalling how one time Zack had actually dared a monster to peck balloons. He didn't know if it was more remarkable that he tried the plan or that the monster actually fell for it.

"Zack, the next deadline is approaching." Drakkon told him. "I think you and Trini should be the next to go."

"But, my Lord, we were so successful." Kimberly said, her brows knitting as she looked to him.

"Come on, Kim, you going to deny Zack a workout he so clearly needs?" Jason stated. The former Black Ranger simply flipped him the bird in response.

"It is true that you did well, but the Rangers have seen you in action now." Drakkon reminded her. "You know how tricky their sort can be. Why keep sending the same servants and allow them to form one of their little schemes?"

"Oh, I am all over this." Zack responded, getting up from his seat. "Trini went to play with the prisoners. I'll just go and find her."

With that, he headed out of the room.

Elsewhere on the ship, Sarah was running for her life, pursued by Drakkon's servant. She had gone to the ship to try and…well…that was the sticking point, she really hadn't gone up there with a plan at all. Even now she was at a loss as to why she had decided to slip into the group of prisoners and stow away on the ship. She'd told herself she was planning something, but from the moment she got there, she was still unsure what if anything drove her to act when she didn't even know what she was wanting to do.

She got into an area of the ship that was full of pipes, pistons and heavy machinery. It was some kind of part of the inner workings of the ship, perhaps part of the engine itself. She'd love to say that she had intended to come here, but the truth was she was still running in a blind panic, trying to get away from Trini.

She still had no idea how Trini had gotten the drop on her. Thanks to her training she was normally quite aware of her surroundings, but Trini had come up behind her almost completely silently. The first she'd known she was even there was when she threw her dagger, narrowly missing her head. Given the fact she'd run what felt like most of the length of the ship though, she was starting to think that missing was intentional. It was clear she enjoyed the chase, and was just waiting on her opportunity to destroy her.

Sarah threw her back against a wall and leaned there, trying to catch her breath. Her heart was pounding like a jackhammer as she tried to catch her breath. She could hear someone coming in. By now, Trini was making little effort to be stealthy, but she still moved as quiet as a panther.

"You know, you've really led me on quite the merry chase." Trini told her with a little smirk as she started to look around the machinery. She started to make her way along the walkway, looking around for signs of her quarry. "You know, we all take joys in different things. Most people are all about the fight, or the victory, but me? I'm all about the chase."

She scanned around, trying to figure out where Sarah might have gone. She slammed the handle of one of her daggers into one of the pistons, the vibrations reverberating through the whole room. Sarah clamped a hand over her mouth to stop her involuntary gasp giving her away. Trini just smiled.

"You know, no matter how many times I do this, no matter how many little Rangers I've run down, I almost feel let down when I finally find them." Trini told her. "To me, the hunt is what's the most fun. I don't know if that's something to do with my powers…personally I just think I love the fear I can smell from them."

Sarah concentrated on her feet, trying to move silently like Brody had taught her. Trini continued to search for her, moving slowly, her gaze swinging from side to side.

"Marco." She called out. "Oh, come on, you're not playing properly. Marco!"

Sarah tried to take the opportunity when it was there, launching herself at Trini's back, but the former Ranger turned around so quickly that as she swing her dagger, Sarah could feel its keen edge slicing through her shirt and barely touching the skin without quite breaking it. She was well aware Trini could have disembowelled her if she had wanted. Trini kicked her back into a safety railing, which shifted a little under the impact. Sarah watched as Trini twirled her daggers.

"Nice try, little girl." Trini mocked her. "But you've stumbled into the big leagues now."

Sarah came back at Trini, attacking her ferociously, trying to keep her eyes on where the knives were. However, it seemed like for every move she made, Trini had at least a dozen counters that she had practiced a hundred times. She spun away, letting out a hiss as Trini sliced her across the cheek. She dabbed her hand to the wound, seeing the blood on her fingers. A superficial wound, another insult more than a serious attempt to harm her. She was playing with her. Sarah glared at her.

"You know, I've done this dance with a number of your former comrades. Even other versions of myself once or twice." Trini taunted her. "Usually…they put up a bit more of a fight."

Sarah spat in Trini's face. The former Yellow Ranger was enraged so much she lunged for her, aiming to run her through in one go. Sarah dodged to the side, letting Trini hit the railing, before leaping up, slamming both her feet into her chest. The force caused the barrier to break, and Trini fell over the edge of the walkway. She morphed into her Ranger mode for protection, before bouncing off a few different surfaces on the way down.

Sarah looked over the edge, seeing Trini had morphed, and was already starting to get up. Her suit was predominantly yellow, with the helmet with a kind of feline visage on it, and long fangs flanking the visor. Her suit also had claws on the ends of the fingers, which were wrapped around her daggers. There were wings attached to the arms, and she had a sword hanging at her hip. She looked up towards Sarah, who didn't wait around to find out how long it would take her get back up. She started to head out, but had to duck as a large axe came her way. Zack's axe hit one of the pipes, splitting it and spewing steam all over him, blinding him long enough for Sarah to escape. As difficult as facing one Ranger was, two would be suicidal. She ran before he could recover. Trini leapt back up to the walkway.

"Didn't you stop her?" Trini yelled at Zack, who was still trying to clear his vision.

"Stop her? What's she even doing her?" He demanded. "How did she get here?"

"Does it matter?" Trini asked him. "We need to get after her and make her regret ever coming here!"

Zack nodded in agreement and morphed. His suit was black, and his helmet had silver crests running along it. He had golden armoured shoulder pads, while his Power Axe was double-headed, and at one end had a green and gold blade, with keys on the side of the blade, and a mouthpiece attached. They both set off to continue their pursuit of Sarah. Trini was having her fun, but no one made a joke of Drakkon's Rangers and lived.

Elsewhere on the ship, Sandy and Monty found their way to the room where the teleporter was kept.

"And Cosmo just…lets you know where he keeps this thing?" She asked.

"I have to know. I'm on production." Monty answered with a shrug. "Along with…everything else too."

"So, how do we get the prisoners from holding to here?" Sandy asked him.

"I'm thinking this is a case of the wise man and the mountain." Monty told her. "If the wise man can't come to the mountain, the mountain must go to the wise man."

"So you want to wheel this thing into holding?" She asked him. "Look, I'm good with the stealth thing but even I'd find wheeling this thing down there without anyone noticing a tall order."

"Well, it's got to be easier than trying to sneak dozens of prisoners to this thing right?" He asked, before a thought came to him. "Unless…we need a distraction right?"

"A distraction would be good." She agreed.

"Well, this thing does things other than just teleport people you know." Monty said with a wry smile.

Just then, Victor was being dragged towards the stage. He'd since been found by some passing kudabots, along with the unconscious stylist and they had reported the matter to Cosmo. Cosmo was keen to kick off the broadcast with his bout with Victor, but he wasn't above accelerating his time scale a little.

"So, are you read for your return to the screen?" Cosmo asked him. Victor struggled in their grip. "I have no idea how you did what you did to my stylist, but I pay him good money to keep me looking this good, and I can't have anyone laying him out when I have a show to do."

"Whatever he's getting paid, he's ripping you off if you think you look good." Victor replied. Cosmo just grinned and headed out onto the stage. The audience exploded with excitement as he strode out onto the stage.

"Ladies and Gentlemonsters, the show of the millennium is still only hours away, but for you, our adoring fans, we have a little appetiser. A special treat if you will, one that I just know you're going to love. Tell me, who do you love more than anything in the universe?"

"COSMO!" They all called out.

"I can't hear you, who do you love?"

"COSMO!" They called out again. Cosmo soaked in the adulation.

"Tonight, for one night only, you all get a very special treat. For many years I've been your host, your guide, your ringmaster of disaster for this carnival of carnage. However, for the first time in many years, for your viewing pleasure, I will return to the arena!"

There was a huge explosion of cheers from the audience as he announced this. There'd already been rumours that Cosmo was going to take part in a bout, but now they were hearing it being confirmed.

"And who is going to be my opponent for this bout? Why, someone I'm sure you'll all remember, someone who had the audacity, the temerity, the sheer rudeness to lay his filthy hands on your favourite host!" He declared. "Give it up, for my victim, Victor Vincent!"

Victor was released from his shackles and shoved out onto the stage. As soon as he was seen, the audience started booing loudly. Any pretence this was anything other than a partisan crowd was quickly melting away. Cosmo pulled off his coat, draping it over the outstretched arms of a waiting kudabot and gestured him to leave, before standing in wait. A buzzer sounded and Victor wasted little time coming over to him.

"You wanted this, well this time I'm going to knock your teeth…"

Victor's swing was ducked, and before he knew it, Cosmo had hit him a good four or five times, ending with a hard kick across the jaw sending him to the floor. Cosmo just chuckled.

"Aw, did you think this would be easy?" He taunted him. "In case you hadn't figured it out, that last time? I LET you hit me. You don't really think I made it to this level in the game just by being a sharp dresser and a gleaming smile do you?"

Victor got up, taking another swing, only for Cosmo to block it and send him staggering with a hard punch to the ribs. Cosmo turned and took in the adulation of the crowd. If he had any lingering doubts that Cosmo had been playing possum the last time, they were gone now.

Sandy was watching as Monty tried to figure out the controls. She was watching the door in case anyone came, but she knew the longer they hung around the more likely it was someone would find them.

"I thought you said you knew how this thing worked." She said impatiently.

"To be fair it was already set up and turned on last time." Monty told her. "Aha! I think we're in business! OK, now all we need is to…"

Just then, Sarah stumbled into the room, out of breath and red-faced. She looked up to Sandy and Monty.

"Oh…I guess you found her then." She panted.

"Yeah, I found her." Monty replied. "Where's Victor?"

"Uh…had to…take a little detour." She gasped as she tried to regain her breath. "You know, psychotic evil Rangers, that kind of thing."

"And this is your rescue plan?" Sandy asked her.

"OK, OK admittedly the word 'plan' might be glorifying it a little bit." Sarah admitted. Just then, Monty shrieked as Zack and Trini came into the room. Sandy and Sarah were standing in defiance, seeing there was nowhere left to run. They quickly adopted a guard. Trini just laughed.

"You remember when we were that optimistic?" She asked him.

"Yeah, glad we grew out of that." Zack said, hefting his axe overhead as he rushed them. Trini watched him closing in.

"ZACK! DON'T TOUCH…!"

Sandy threw her hands in front of her face defensively, at which the Green lightning arced out of her hands once more. Zack was blasted back, straight into Trini, bowling them both out of the door. Sandy looked to them tentatively as Sarah rushed to close and lock the door.

"Uh…OK, I am REALLY going to need to know how I do that!" She remarked.

"Right now, I'll take being alive as a win!" Sarah told her. "OK Monty, you got this thing up and running?"

"Yes, and we're ready to GO!" He said, slamming his hand down on one of the buttons. Both Sandy and Sarah just looked around, bewildered.

"Uh…Monty?" Sandy asked. "We're still here."

"But that wasn't the teleport button." He told her. "That was just a little distraction."

Just then, they heard a loud crash and ship lurched.

"What was that?" Sarah asked.

"That was my distraction." Monty told them. "Something tells me Drakkon's not going to be looking anywhere near us right now! Come on!"

He opened the door, at which they found Trini and Zack had left. The ship lurched again, but this time they decided not to question it. Grabbing the teleporter machine, the three of them pushed it as fast as they could down towards the holding block.

In his throne room, Drakkon was watching the show on his viewing screen, taking amusement in watching Cosmo beat down on Victor. Jason and Kimberly were also watching, sharing some snacks as they laughed at Victor's expense. Only Billy seemed not to be amused.

"This is a waste of time." He snorted. "That idiot's nothing to do with us, why are we wasting our time with him?"

"Billy, you really need to learn how to relax in your old age." Jason responded.

"Was that meant to be a joke?" He snapped. Although he was able to retard the aging process with the Phantom Ranger powers now, he was still a little sensitive about his advanced aging. Drakkon just held up a hand.

"Must you?" He asked in an exasperated tone. "I swear, if I wanted this much bickering I'd have had children. Perhaps I'd have been better off getting pets!"

Just then, they all reacted in alarm as there was a flash of light. A skullgator appeared right in the middle of the throne room.

"Holy SHIT!" Jason yelled as it lunged for him, trying to swallow him in one bite. They all quickly morphed.

"Zack, Trini, get to the throne room!" Drakkon barked over the communicators.

"But, My Lord…"

"NOW!" He demanded.


	34. The Black Dragon Comes

On the stage, Cosmo was taking his time dismantling Victor before his live audience, savouring every moment of it. Despite his appearances and the fact his main talents lay in directing the shows, he had served his own time in the arena. He didn't normally like getting his hands dirty, but he did have a sadistic streak that served him well in creating his shows. It really helped being callous, cruel and dispassionate enough to be able to convince a warrior that he had their best interests at heart and build on them while they earned him money, only to cash in that investment when they had run their course. It was the same sadism he brought to his bout with Victor.

Victor was by no means a trained fighter. He had been involved in the usual schoolyard scraps and suchlike, but he was really more of a brawler that relied on his size to intimidate most people into backing off before he needed to throw a punch or being able to manhandle them if need be. He'd fared pretty well against kudabots when he fought alongside the Rangers against Galvanax, but against Cosmo he found his swings just sailing through thin air while Cosmo was able to strike out at him with ease.

"Aw, did you fall down again?" Cosmo taunted him. Victor started rubbing his jaw, glaring up at him. Cosmo turned his back to him as he soaked up more cheers from the crowd, at which Victor lunged for him once more. Cosmo caught him with a hard rear elbow straight in the ribs, before knocking him down again, much to the crowd's delight.

"You know, some people like a fair fight, but I prefer it when the odds are a little more in my favour." He remarked as he watched Victor stumbling as he tried to get up. "Now, don't tell me you're done already? I was hoping to entertain myself for at least a few more…"

Just then, there was a massive crash from the side of the studio, and the whole ship shifted and lurched. There was another crash and now there were people in the crowd starting to panic. Cosmo looked around, completely confused, but Victor saw only an opportunity. With the same set of skills that had given him the rushing record three years in a row as Summer Cove's star running back, he drove his shoulder deep into Cosmo's chest, bearing him straight to the ground. In a move that even the most lenient of referees would never abide though, he mounted Cosmo, lifting one knee up and driving it as hard as he could straight into his groin.

"Say goodbye to your little friends!" Victor yelled, before starting to rain in hard haymakers straight to Cosmo's face. He doubted that he'd have this advantage for long, Cosmo was bound to regain composure eventually, so he was hoping to do as much damage as he possibly could. He completely ignored the screams from the crowd, the crashes from the ship and everything else, instead just putting everything he had into driving his fist as far into Cosmo's face as he possibly could.

Down in the Ranger Base, the team returned from training, preparing for when Drakkon's next deadline came up. They wanted to get a little time to rest before he sent his next Ranger attack into the city. Calvin had barely got his ass onto a chair when the alarm went off.

"Oh, come on!" He whined. "There's still at least ten minutes until two hours is up!"

"He's a bad guy Cal, I don't think he cares too much about promises." Hayley reminded him. Just then, Mick checked.

"This is…this is weird." He commented. "There's Ranger energy, but…it's ours."

"What?" Levi asked, checking the scan.

"It's our Ranger energy and…and a whole lot of humans too." Mick told them. "Dozens of them!"

"See if you can get a visual." Brody rushed out. Mick patched into the city's security surveillance, finally finding the street the energy signatures were coming from. The Rangers all watched as the citizens of Summer Cove started appearing in large groups. Sarah and Sandy were there guiding them to safety.

"What in the hell?" Levi asked.

"If there's one thing I've learned by now it's never underestimate Sarah." Preston told them. "Come on, let's get out there!"

Back up on the Warrior Dome, Monty finished sending the last group of civilians down to Earth with the teleporter. Since he'd used it before, he was the only one that really understood how it worked, so reluctantly, Sarah and Sandy had let him send everyone else down, but they made him promise that he'd teleport down straight after. Monty realised he was the last one left, but as the ship lurched again, he could only think of the fact Victor was still on board.

"Sorry, Sarah." He said, taking a deep breath and puffing out his chest as he grabbed the machine and turned it towards the stage. "But I can't go just yet!"

He started pushing it towards the studio, and he got to within sight of the stage, where Cosmo had managed to regain some measure of control of the match. He could see Victor had clearly managed to get in some good licks, but Cosmo had managed to get back in control of the match and was now looking to punish him for his efforts.

"Victor!" He called out, trying to get his best friend's attention, but Victor either couldn't hear him or wasn't in a position to answer. Either way, Monty was left with little alternative. Some kudabots were coming his way. With a huge scream, Monty put his whole body weight behind the machine and ran it like a battering ram straight into them.

Back down on Earth, Sarah and Sandy had just finished ushering the last of the civilians away when the rest of the team arrived. Sarah looked a little sheepish as they got there. By now they had to have figured out what she had done.

"Um…hey…guys." Sarah greeted them. "I got Sandy and…WHOA!"

She was cut off as Brody grabbed her, hugging her tightly. In turn, the rest of them descended on her, also hugging her tightly, while Preston was busy holding onto Sandy. Hayley was the last to hold her, but as she released Sarah, she punched her hard in the shoulder.

"HEY!" Sarah protested.

"Don't you EVER do anything like that again!" Hayley yelled at her. "Do you have any idea how worried we were? I…I'm going grey! Seriously, look, I have grey hairs now!"

Calvin just looked away as he heard Hayley ranting at her best friend. Sarah took a deep breath.

"I'm…I'm sorry guys, I had this idea and I didn't think you'd go along with it…"

"Damn right we wouldn't have gone along with it!" Levi yelled at her. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"I…guess I was thinking I could save the people on the ship." She replied. "And hey, I got Sandy back!"

"Yeah, and you almost got killed into the bargain!" Brody reminded her. "We're having a tough enough time with Drakkon and his Rangers without being outnumbered into the bargain."

"Oh…right…I guess that makes sense." Sarah acknowledged. "I didn't think that part out too thoroughly I guess."

"I don't think you thought through much of anything." Sandy chuckled. "If it wasn't for my power kicking in again I don't think we'd have got out of there. Not to mention Monty…"

"Wait, where is Monty?" Sarah asked, looking around. "Shit! He must still be up there!"

"Sarah…"

"No, we have to go back…"

"There's no way we can, yet!" Brody interrupted her. "In the meantime, let's get back to base. I think we're lucky that Drakkon and his crew haven't come down already. We need to figure out what to do before they do."

With that, they all headed back towards the Command Centre.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Billy was slammed against the wall of the throne room, while Zack was on the back of the Skullgator Monty had teleported in, hacking away wildly at it with his Power Axe.

"Kim! Give it one in the eye!" Drakkon yelled. Kimberly powered up her power bow, scoring a huge shot straight to the creature's face, stunning it with a huge explosion that tested the limits of their suits' protective powers. Utilising such an attack at close quarters wasn't the best idea, but right now they were running short on options. Drakkon signalled to his team.

"Bring them together!" He called out. Assembling before him, they brought together all their weapons, forming up the Power Blaster. Drakkon placed his hands on Jason's shoulders as they all held onto him, lending him their power as he pulled the trigger. There was a massive blast, which all but completely obliterated everything in the throne room, and forced them all to de-morph, but by the time the smoke cleared, all that was left of the Skullgator was some bone shards littered around the room.

"I swear, I am going to find out who sent Dino in here and I'm going to split him in half!" Jason roared angrily.

"That Pink Ranger thinks she can mess with us?" Trini grumbled, stretching out her neck. "It'll take a lot more than that to…"

"Wait, Pink Ranger?" Drakkon asked. "What are you talking about?"

"Uh…" Trini responded, realising the situation she'd stumbled into. Although she was a powerful ally to Drakkon, he wasn't beyond destroying his own, and he did not tolerate failure with good grace. She kind of glanced towards Kim, but she just held up her hands, shaking her head.

"Hey, don't look at me, I've been here the whole time!" She answered. "That's why I still have bite marks on…"

"What do you mean the Pink Ranger?" Drakkon demanded.

"The ninja one, she was on the ship!" Zack snapped. "Only miss wildcat here had to go and play her little game of cat and mouse and…"

"You mean to tell me that one of the Rangers was here on my ship, and you DIDN'T TELL ME?" Drakkon roared. Both of them gulped in unison. "Bill, what the hell did she do?"

Billy got onto the computer and started cycling through the security cameras. He just looked to Drakkon, taking off his glasses and stroking the bridge of his nose.

"The prisoners are gone." He told him. Drakkon just blinked.

"What did you say?" Drakkon responded.

"The prisoners are gone." Billy reiterated. "I've just checked, they're nowhere on the ship!"

"How many of them?" Drakkon asked.

"All of them." Billy informed him. "Including the Green Ranger."

"I…I…I have no idea how…"

"We will discuss your failures later!" Drakkon growled, looking to her and Zack. "In the meantime, find out exactly how much damage our uninvited guests have caused!"

Back at the Ranger Base, the Rangers came into the Command Centre, at which Sandy immediately grabbed hold of her sister, hugging her tightly. She released her, before grabbing Sarah, almost snapping her spine clear in two with the mother of all grateful hugs.

"Whoa, uh…you're welcome!" Sarah told her. "Kind of need to breathe though."

"Mick, Sarah's got the hostages off the ship, but Victor and Monty are still up there." Brody began, running down the situation. "Not to mention she said something about Monty putting a Skullgator in their throne room."

"I guess it's too much to hope for that it's eaten them." Emma stated. "But it'll at least give them something to think about."

"Point is when they do come back, they're going to be pissed, and I don't think we have a lot of time before that happens." Levi chipped in. "Sandy, you said something about your power?"

"Yeah, it…it flared up again." She told them. "I really wish I knew what it was or…"

"I think I might have an idea about that." Mick told them. "It was more of a theory…kind of a notion really…I'm not even sure it was…"

"MICK!" They all called out together. He just nodded and held his hand up.

"Right, the point." Mick stated. "I've been checking each of the times your power's activated, and I think I might just have found a pattern…or a coincidence…at least a sort of connection…or…"

"MICK!" They all called out again.

"Alright, the first time it was with Draven, right?" He asked. "Who was from…?"

"Another dimension?" Preston asked.

"Right!" Mick stated, before pulling up the footage of their battles. "Then it flared up again with Wrench, who said his tech came from another dimension. Then you said it flared up against one of Drakkon's guys who is from another dimension…"

"You think her power works only against beings from another dimension." Brody surmised.

"My theory is Psycho Green acted as kind of an assassin or fore guard for Drakkon, going to other dimensions to clear the way for him." Mick said. "The Ninja Steel takes on properties that are useful, and you said your star fused with a piece of his armour…"

"So, you think I'm what? Some kind of extra-dimensional Kryptonite?" Sandy asked him.

"Probably not the way I'd put it but…yeah." Mick said, nodding frantically.

"So, how do we best use the fact I'm the strongest weapon but the weakest fighter?" Sandy asked. She saw Preston moving to answer. "Preston…it's fine, I can face facts."

Just then, the Nexus Prism started to glow.

"I have never been more grateful to see that!" Preston stated. "What do you see?"

Brody looked deep into the Nexus Prism, seeing some images starting to form up and swirl.

"I…I…think…no…it can't be." Brody said, before nodding. "I think I know what to do. Redbot, melt down the Super Ninja Steel."

"How much do you want me to prepare?" He asked.

"All of it!" Brody told him. Everyone in the room just stared at him.

"What did you say?" Calvin asked.

"All of it!" Brody told him, getting a box full of their weapon and Zord stars, turning them out on the table. "Including these!"

He then removed his Power Star from his pocket.

"And these." He told him, throwing it onto the table.

"Brody, are you sure about this?" Hayley asked him. "You're talking about melting down our entire arsenal right before our most powerful enemy…"

"Just…trust me!" Brody told them. The Rangers all looked around each other. They didn't like the sounds of this plan in the slightest, but they had never known the Nexus Prism, or Brody to steer them wrong before. Sarah took out her Power Star, setting it down.

"I guess it's not the first risk I've taken today." She sighed. One by one, they all turned in their Power Stars, until it was only Sandy left. She took out her Power Star, staring at it.

"There are so many times I wish this thing had never chosen me." She told them. "Now I'm not sure I want to risk giving it up."

"Trust me, we feel the same way." Preston said, turning her to face him. He then signed something to her. She pulled in, kissing him passionately as she tossed her Power Star onto the pile.

"I have to go on the record as saying I don't like this plan." Mick said as he started to gather up all the Ninja Stars, putting them into a melting container. "But I remember how things turned out the last time I said that." With that, he put the container on the furnace.

Up on the Warrior Dome, Monty ducked and dived as he ran the machine back and forth, smashing it into kudabots in his desperate bid to get towards the stage. He finally finished off the last of them, before heading onto the stage, where Cosmo was pummelling Victor on the ground. The host turned around, seeing Monty on the stage.

"What? What are you doing here?" He yelled. "I didn't tell you to bring that out!"

"MONTY!" Victor called out. "Get out of here!"

"Not a chance!" Monty told him. "Not when I'm going to give this show a little more BITE!"

He slammed his hand down on the control, summoning up another skullgator. He continued to change the locations, teleporting skullgators all over the ship to prevent any of Cosmo's followers coming to help. Cosmo just started to back away from the skullgator as it fixed its gaze on him.

"Down boy…heel!" Cosmo said, trying to calm it. "Now, just remember who's your master…"

The skullgator just roared as it advanced on him. Victor got to his feet, running up behind Cosmo, grabbing him by the seat of the pants and the scruff of the neck. Before he could respond, Victor hurled him with all his might, screaming into the waiting jaws of the Skullgator. Cosmo's blood-curdling screams rang out throughout the studio as the Skullgator started shaking him around, chewing on him with gusto. Victor started to back away.

"Monty, I think it's time we were leaving." Victor told him.

"I couldn't agree more!" Monty replied, mashing his hand down on the teleport control, causing them both to disappear in a blinding light.

Back down on Earth, Mick had finished melting down the Super Ninja Steel. It was far more than they had ever melted at one time before, and they still weren't sure what the Nexus Prism had planned for it all. Mick passed the container through the crystal's surface, before backing away.

"Well, it's done." Mick sighed. "Now all we can do is wait and hope that…"

"Guys, check it out." Calvin said as he pointed to the monitors. They all gathered around, seeing to their horror that Drakkon and his Rangers had teleported down to the city.

"We're out of time." Hayley gasped. "What do we do?"

"The only thing we can do." Brody said, getting up. He looked to the others. "I'll understand if…"

"No, not a chance." Levi said, stepping up. "You're not going out there alone."

"There's more to being a Ranger than the powers." Preston said as he got up. "I may not like it but…we started this, so we'll finish it…no matter how it ends."

One by one, they all got up and stepped forward. Brody looked down, holding his face. He didn't want them to see him wiping away a tear. He had spent most of his life on the Warrior Dome alone. He would never have imagined in all those years having a team like that. He wiped his face.

"Thank you." He told them. "I couldn't have asked for a better team."

"Before we go, I just…I just want to say one thing." Calvin said, turning to Hayley. "I might not get another chance at this. I was mad at you, and I was…look, the thing is, when Sarah was up on that ship, all I could think about was what if it was you? And I couldn't imagine not getting to tell you because I was so proud that…"

"Just…come here." Hayley replied, grabbing him and pulling him in, kissing him deeply. They parted from each other, looking into each other's eyes. "I'm sorry."

"OK, we're ready?" Brody asked. "Mick, when the Nexus Prism does its thing…you figure it out!"

With that, they all ran out of the base.

In the middle of the city, Drakkon and his Rangers were waiting, knowing that the Rangers were likely already aware of their presence. They'd refused to play Drakkon's game and had now forced his hand. Zack had taken to amusing himself, turning his axe into cannon mode and randomly destroying store fronts and cars.

"Rangers, come out to play!" He cackled as he demolished another car. He saw a couple of trucks driving towards them and was preparing to fire, but Drakkon stopped him. They both pulled to the sides of the road, at which the Rangers all disembarked. They started walking towards Drakkon and his Rangers purposefully.

"Your attack on me was an insult." Drakkon declared. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't destroy this whole city and everything in it!"

"Because you know as well as I do, if you do that then you'll always have that doubt." Brody told him. "That little nagging voice in the back of your head what would happen if you ever faced us head on!"

"Really? Are you serious?" Jason chuckled. "In case you haven't been paying attention, we're 0 for 2 here. I think it's pretty clear what would happen."

"If you're so sure than let's do this." Brody beckoned them, at which they all pulled into a guard. Drakkon noticed something wasn't right with this scene.

"Hold on, why aren't you morphing?" He asked.

"We've got the courage to face you face-to-face." Levi sneered. "Let's see if the big bad Lord Drakkon can say the same!"

"I'm bored." Kimberly sighed, powering up her Power Bow, and beginning to draw it. Drakkon just put a hand on her shoulder, indicating to her to stay her hand.

"Alright, I'm game." Drakkon said as he powered down. The others all followed suit. "Just remember, you asked for this!"


	35. Battling the Black Dragon

Victor and Monty appeared back in Summer Cove, landing in a heap several blocks from the High School.

"Sorry." Monty grumbled. "I thought I'd be better at this by now."

"Don't be so hard on yourself Monty." Victor responded, peeling himself off the pavement. "They say any landing you walk away from is a good one."

"So, what do we do now?" Monty asked him. Victor just looked to him and shrugged.

"I guess we should let the others know we got off the ship." He suggested. "We don't want them risking a rescue mission when there's no one to rescue."

Monty positioned himself under Victor's arm for support, helping him as they started limping towards the school.

"You know, it's just a shame there's not going to be a trophy for this." Monty told him.

"Monty, trophies aren't everything." Victor declared. "Sometimes, the mark of a true hero is when those he saves have no idea he's saved them."

In another area of the city, Mick and Redbot were anxiously awaiting the Nexus Prism while Emma watched the battle between her fingers.

She hated the fact that her sister and her friends were out there, risking their necks while she was in here. She'd had a few lessons under Brody, but right now she was absolutely nowhere near ready to help them in a fight this important. She had learned some basics, but she was under no false impressions how long she'd last against someone with even a little more experience. Brody and Levi had been training most of their lives, Sarah and the others by now had a good couple of years under their belt and if they didn't qualify for a Black Belt if they were formally graded, then they were certainly only a little way off it. Her sister had a couple of months, but Emma was more likely to get in the way than anything else, just be something else for them to worry about.

"Oh…That isn't meant to bend that way." She said with a wince. "Mick, is the Nexus Prism ready?"

"Not quite." Mick told her. "This thing doesn't really come with an instruction manual or a user's guide. It doesn't even come with a 'Nexus Prism for Dummies'."

"So there's nothing we can do to make it go faster?" She shrieked. "What's the point in it doing…whatever it's doing…if the Rangers aren't alive to take whatever it spits out?"

"I really wish I had a good answer for you." Mick replied honestly.

"But my sister…"

"Hey, my family's out there too!" Mick reminded her. "You've got to believe being in here kills me. I would gladly be out there with whatever I could lay my hands on right now, but we have to believe in them and hope for the best."

"But…"

"NO BUTS!" Mick told her. "It'll be ready when it's ready…and that's as much as we can say."

"But Drakkon's guys still have powers. Our Rangers don't!" Emma reminded him.

"Which is why Brody called them out, playing their ego, challenging them to a street fight." Mick told her. "You've read your mom's old texts. You know all the same tenants of ninjutsu as they do. One of the most important things you can do is play all of your opponent's weaknesses, and vanity is a weakness. Drakkon's not the kind of guy that wants people saying that he could only beat them when they didn't have powers."

"So, what happens if he changes his mind?" She asked. "What happens if he starts to lose and decides to pull his trump card?"

Mick didn't answer, instead turning back to the Nexus Prism, but his silence spoke volumes.

Over at the site of the battle, the Ninja Steel Rangers and Drakkon's Rangers were engaged in a brutal battle for supremacy. Brody already knew it was a gamble to face them before the Nexus Prism did whatever it was going to do. Without powers, if Drakkon hadn't fallen for his invitation to a fight without powers, they would undoubtedly already be dead.

He was, however, starting to worry about how much better off they were in these stakes though. Even without their powers, Drakkon and his Rangers were seasoned warriors, with untold numbers of fights under their belt. In their respective dimensions, they'd all been the original Angel Grove team, which meant all of them had already faced hundreds of battles, even before anyone factored in however many battles they'd faced after they had turned.

Drakkon was bouncing on the balls of his feet as Brody spun away from him, getting some distance between them. Drakkon just smirked at him.

"You know, you're pretty good." He conceded. "If you'd just see the sense in what I'm trying to do, then you'd make great additions to my army."

"Sorry, but I'm not a psychopath!" Brody shot back, rushing towards him with some swift attacks that Drakkon managed to either block or dodge.

"Psychopath? PSYCHOPATH?" Drakkon roared. "Is that what you think of me?"

"You've killed billions across God knows how many dimensions so…yeah, kinda!" Brody shot back.

"You've seen what this world is like, what this universe is like! People all out for themselves, pillaging and stripping their worlds for every last scrap of natural resources all for themselves. They prey on the slightest little differences between themselves. Sure, every now and then there might be a time where things are good and people get along, but when times get a little difficult? When there's a little bit less to go around? We all see humanity's true face!" Drakkon preached as he started to rally back towards him, managing to get a good hit into Brody's gut through his guard and staggering him. "The least little difference, the smallest reason, the slightest excuse and suddenly someone is no longer worthy of the very basics of life. People divide themselves on the pettiest of excuses. What school they went to, what country they're from, what building they go to every week to pray. All when people are pushed just a little bit. I just want to tear it all down, to unite everyone behind one banner, to end all the needless bloodshed…"

"There's a word for what you just described. It's called FASCISM!" Brody yelled back. "You talk about wanting to unite people but you want to do that by taking away their freedom? To take away their right to follow or not follow whoever they think they should? You're not just a psychopath, you're a fascist lunatic!"

"And you think your world is so great right now? When you see the way people turn on each other…"

"It's not perfect, but given the alternative? This world is worth fighting for!" Brody answered. "That's all we can do, try to fight for a better world, and when someone else comes up that needs to be put down? We'll fight them too, for as long as it takes! If it takes forever, so be it!"

"Nice words." Drakkon responded as he caught one of Brody's kicks, throwing his leg up in the air and causing him to fall to the ground. He brought down an axe kick right for his head, but Brody just managed to roll aside before he caved in his skull. "Pity no one else will ever hear them!"

In another part of the battle, Levi tumbled down some rubble as Jason hit him with a hard kick. He got up, just in time to see Jason stoop down, picking up his hat. He twirled it, placing it on his head.

"Think it suits me?" Jason asked. "Maybe I'll just keep it as a souvenir. There's not going to be much else left of you."

"My dad gave me that." Levi told him.

"Aw, that's sweet." Jason replied sarcastically. "Tell him it fits perfectly."

"Give it back!" Levi warned him.

"Think you can do something to make me?" Jason mocked him.

"Anything happens to that hat, I'll skin you like a deer!" Levi warned him. "And just so you know, I've skinned a lot of deer!"

"TRY IT COWBOY!" Jason yelled at him, taking the hat off his head and gripping it in both hands, preparing to tear it in half, but before he could, Levi was on top of him, bearing him straight to the ground and hammering into his face.

Back at the Command Centre, Emma was still watching the battle, terrified of the outcome. Drakkon's Rangers, even without utilising their powers, were pretty close to overmatching their friends.

She could only watch as Billy was systematically dismantling both Preston and Sandy. They'd both targeted him, eager to settle the score from their previous battle, but so far as soon as they started to make a little bit of a gain, he was able to come up with a way to reverse the tide. Billy was more of a defensive, tactical fighter than some of the others. In his earliest days, being the one that had the least fighting experience, he was forced to use his intellect to look for ways to exploit the gaps in the offence of anyone who came for him. With his genius IQ, it wasn't too hard for him to analyse what was coming his way and form a new strategy, and he was never caught the same way twice.

She let out a yelp, covering her face as she watched Sandy take another hard hit. Mick had told her to believe, but all she could see was her big sister getting pummelled. She was trying to imagine going home to the room they shared and her not being there. She was trying to imagine how she'd explain to her parents what had happened. A million and one horrible thoughts were going through her mind when the room was bathed in a bright glow, far brighter than they had ever seen before. It was so bright that as they turned toward the Nexus Prism they couldn't even look at it. Even Redbot had to shield his eyes from it.

"I think…I think its working!" Mick called out. Just then, something fired out of the Nexus Prism, so fast and so hard it shot across the room and lodged in the opposite wall. Mick just stared at it in amazement.

"I…I don't believe it." Mick gasped.

"Mick, what's going on?" Emma asked. The Nexus Prism wasn't done there though, in quick succession, it fired out another few times. By the time it was done, they all marvelled at what they had seen.

"Uh…Mick? What are…?"

"I'd say things are looking up for the good guys!" Mick stated. "We need to get this to the guys as soon as possible!"

They started working to extract the Nexus Prism's gifts from the wall, before heading out to the parking lot to find a car to take. Now that they had the Nexus Prism's power, they could only hope they got it to the others before it was too late.

Back at the site of the battle, things weren't looking great for the Ninjas. Although they had given Drakkon's Rangers more than a few lumps, it was starting to feel more and more like an uphill struggle. They were looking for opportunities that just weren't there. Before they were evil, before they were agents of destruction, they were Rangers, which meant they knew more than most what the play book was. The experience was a huge factor as Sarah was finding out to her cost.

Trini blocked one of her kicks, before sweeping her legs out from under her. Sarah started to get up, only to be knocked down with a vicious punch to the face, turning her to her face.

"You might have slipped from my grip the last time, but you won't be so lucky this time!" Trini told her. They all looked skyward as explosions tore through the sky. They could see the Warrior Dome ship starting to descend through the clouds, flames engulfing it and explosions tearing through it as it started to come down. Sarah could only look up in horror. She remembered Monty releasing the Skullgators on board, she knew that they had to be causing a riot on the ship. It was only a matter of time before it couldn't take any more. She suddenly forgot all about Trini, stumbling away from her, staring at the ship wide-eyed as it came down, colliding with the shields over the city and exploding devastatingly, lighting up the sky. Tears started to well up in her as only one thought echoed through her mind. Victor and Monty were still up there! Victor had told her to go when Trini attacked her, Monty had stayed to try and get Victor out. There was no way anyone could have survived that. She felt an arm wrap around her neck, and another clamp behind her head. A rear-naked choke, a highly dangerous and devastating manoeuvre, one that Brody had taught her some time ago. With it, a ninja could silence a sentry and render them unconscious or kill them within seconds. Trini didn't seem to be interested in snapping her neck, she wanted Sarah to suffer. She felt her head starting to spin as her brain was deprived of blood.

"Looks like we lost Cosmo. Still, no great loss." Trini told her. "Don't worry though, soon it won't matter much to…"

"SARAH!" Someone called out as she was feeling herself starting to slip away. She looked a little way off, to where Victor and Monty were stumbling down the street. They'd stumbled into the middle of the battle on their way to the school. Sarah grabbed Trini's arm and wrenched hard to get one good breath, before flipping backwards right over her head. She grabbed Trini's arm, twisting it and wrenching it hard with a horrific snapping sound. The former Yellow Ranger started to back away from her, her arm hanging limp and useless with a look of fear in her face. She scrambled away to regroup with the others, at which Sarah turned and ran towards Victor.

"Sarah, I…"

Sarah cut him off by throwing herself at him, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her lips to his. For a horrible moment she thought he was gone, incinerated in the explosion of the Warrior Dome ship. She'd spent weeks trying to tell herself how nonsensical it all was. That her feelings were nothing more than a physical attraction to Victor, that it was just a stupid crush that would pass, that in just a couple of months they'd probably never even see each other again, but for the briefest of moments, she could only think that he'd been killed and she never had the chance to tell him what he meant to her. As they parted, he looked to her.

"Uh…I feel fine." He told her. "But…thanks for the healing."

"Victor, I…uh…" She started to stammer, but he could see something in her. She just put a hand on his arm, at which he felt some of his bruising subsiding. He looked to her. "That…that's all it takes."

That was when he understood. It only took a touch. She didn't need to kiss him. There was only one reason she would have kissed him, one reason it would occur to her to do so. He had always admired Sarah, but he never would have dreamed she would see him as anything other than the joke she had met bragging about his trophies on the first day of school. He took her in his arms, kissing her intensely. They parted from each other once more.

"Uh…we should…um…probably talk about…"

"Yeah." She interrupted. "But…you know…not when the world is…"

"Yeah." He agreed. They turned in time to see Drakkon and his Rangers starting to assemble once more, while the ninjas started to come towards Sarah. Jason was nursing his jaw as he came to Drakkon's side.

"I have had it with this shit!" He roared. "Why are we playing this stupid game?"

"Funny thing, we're all good." Levi retorted, breathing heavily as he wiped some blood from his mouth. "We can do this all day."

"And every day after that!" Hayley interjected.

"For as long as it takes!" Calvin agreed.

"Because that's what being a Ranger is all about!" Sandy yelled. "It's not about power, it's not about cool toys and weird robots. It's about standing up to sickos like you!"

"And that's the thing you've all forgotten about being Rangers!" Brody declared proudly. "I'd sooner fight alongside any one of my friends than with your whole team!"

"You know Jason, I'm starting to come around to your way of thinking." Drakkon drawled, pulling out his morpher. "It's clear they will never see the light."

"So much for the great Lord Drakkon." Preston stated. "You're all big boasts and full of bluster when you've got power, but when it's just you? You can't hack it! No wonder you're all Zordon's rejects."

"Ooh, I'm so wounded." Kimberly mocked them as they all morphed. "What difference do you think your words will make when you're all dead?"

"Because you'll always know, on an even field, you're nothing but a cheap imitation." Calvin told her.

"See, that's the thing about history. It's written by the victor." Drakkon reminded them. "And since we're the only ones here and soon you won't be…the truth of this encounter is whatever we tell people it is."

"Alright, let's bring it together!" Jason roared as they all produced their weapons and started to form up the Mega Blaster. Brody and the others stood firm.

"Guys, I just want you to know…it's been an honour." Brody told them. "No one could have asked for a better team."

"All things considered." Calvin said, his hand linking with Hayley's. "I wouldn't have changed a thing."

They watched as Drakkon and his Rangers started to power up their blast. They were standing, ready to accept their fate, when Redbot flew into view, crashing a little way from them. Emma, who had been clinging to him for dear life, tumbled to the ground a little way from them.

"EMMA!" Sandy screamed. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I think this is what they call the Hail Mary!" She replied, reaching into her backpack and pulling something out. "CATCH!"

She threw something through the air, which Brody snatched to his chest. He held it out, staring at it in disbelief.

"No, freaking way!" He gasped. "It…IT WORKED!"

It had been a decade since he had seen it, but right there, in his hands, was the Ninja Nexus Star. It was much larger than the other Power Stars, and featured the colours of all the Rangers, including a new addition, the Green Ranger.

The others were surprised as Emma threw more to them, pretty soon each of them was holding their own Ninja Nexus Star. Just as Sarah caught the last, Drakkon's Rangers opened fire. Energy surged from their Power Blaster, surging through towards them. There was a huge explosion, at which they all turned away from a large cloud of smoke.

"No matter how many times we do that, it never gets old." Zack cackled.

"You know…now that I think about it…" They heard a voice behind them say as someone started to emerge from the smoke. "Maybe we shouldn't have turned our backs on all those explosions."

"No…" Drakkon gasped as they all turned back towards the Rangers. "It…It can't be!"

"Oh, it is!" Sarah said as the Ninja Steel Rangers emerged from the smoke, wearing suits that matched the style of their old suits, but shimmered and constantly shifted between all the Ranger colours. "Now, as my friend Tyler used to always say, it's about to get wild!"


	36. The Nexus Prisms Final Gift

The battle of the Rangers raged with unbelievable power. Drakkon's forces each had the fused powers of more than one Ranger within them, while Drakkon himself had the power of dozens, possibly more. However, the Nexus Prism had done something completely unexpected when the Rangers had sacrificed their Power Stars and all the remaining Super Ninja Steel. It had re-created not one, but seven Ninja Nexus Stars.

Mick watched from the lab, his equipment going absolutely haywire. The power levels coming from the battle site were far beyond anything that had been seen in any of their previous battles, or indeed possibly any battle before.

"Mick, are you seeing this?" Levi asked him over the communicator as he and Jason staggered away from each other, having traded numerous blows which went off like neutron bombs. "This is incredible!"

"Uh…yeah, it's really something guys." Mick agreed.

"The Nexus Prism's really been holding out on us with this!" Sarah interjected as she dodged several of Trini's swipes, before kicking her backwards, where she rebounded off a parked car. "If we'd had these powers from the start, I don't think the bad guys would have lasted a week!"

"Mick, I think you should see this!" Redbot rushed out in a panic. Mick turned around to see what he was talking about. The Nexus Prism was still glowing, and getting only brighter by the minute, spinning wildly. He could hear a faint cracking sound through its chimes, and put on his welder's mask to take a closer look.

"Guys, I think there's a REALLY good reason the Nexus Prism didn't give you these powers earlier." Mick told them. "It's starting to crack up."

"It's doing what?" Brody asked.

"It's starting to break up! I think its struggling to pump out this much power!" Mick told them. "Look, Grace told me once it's too dangerous to have too much Ranger power of the same type in one place at one time. It's why teams are generally only five or so strong."

"So, what you're saying is…"

"What I'm saying is each of you is pumping out the equivalent of the whole team's power at once!" Mick clarified. "This is the Morphing Grid version of a critical meltdown!"

"So you're saying…?"

"I'm saying you need to take this as a weapon of last resort and finish this fight fast!" Mick confirmed. "Because when the Nexus Prism's gone…that's it."

"Alright, you heard the man!" Levi responded as he looked to the others. "I'm going to help Brody with Drakkon. Guys you need to finish these guys as quick as you can."

"On it!" Calvin responded as he pulled out his blaster, opening fire on Zack. The Black Ranger started blowing through the mouthpiece on his weapon, powering up his shield, which was glowing under the power, rebounding the blasts. Calvin never intended the blasts to finish him off though, just force him to guard, giving him time enough to get close.

"It's time for the last dance!" Calvin called out as he started hammering home with his sword.

"I…don't…DANCE!" Zack called back as he blocked his blows, before rallying back with the Power Axe. Calvin recalled one of Brody's early lessons in the yard. Being tall, and also one of the stronger members of the team, Calvin was used to using power to resolve a lot of issues. Brody had made the demonstration of what happened with a lot of enemies that used heavier weapons like hammers and axes. While they were powerful, people were prone to over-swinging them, over-extending to use the weight to its advantage. Stepping past the blade, getting right inside, Calvin managed to hook the haft and rip the axe from his grasp, before spinning around, bringing Zack's own weapon to bear on him.

The Black Ranger's shield shattered under the blow, and the blast levelled him on the ground. Even Calvin was barely standing from the blast, but it gave him all the time he needed to turn the weapon around, converting it to cannon mode.

"Say hello to extinction!" Calvin told him, opening fire. Zack's suit could only hold up for so long, before he was blasted to the ground, where he de-morphed. He started scrambling around, looking for his corrupted Power Coin, but as he saw it and started crawling towards it, Calvin brought his blade down, shattering it to pieces. Zack just slumped to the ground, utterly defeated as Calvin strode away.

In another part of the battle, Sandy was battling with Kimberly, exchanging volleys of energy arrows from their bows.

"You know, some people would be insulted by getting the rookie!" Kimberly called out. "Not me, I don't mind who I destroy. After all, winning is the best…GAAH!"

She was knocked to the ground as Sandy flipped through the air, nimbly avoiding her arrows, before smashing into her with her morpher. Kimberly looked up in time to watch her snap the Power Bow over her knee.

"You…you think I need that?" Kimberly shrieked, pulling out the Drago Sword. "I'll carve you up like Thanksgiving…"

"You're talking aren't you?" Sandy asked. "I bet that's a great distraction to some people."

Kimberly shrieked as she ran for Sandy, who stood perfectly still. She knew her timing had to be perfect for this to work, otherwise, it was possible Kimberly could regain the advantage. Kimberly swung for her, only for Sandy to disappear just as the glowing Drago Sword came for her. She stumbled past a few paces, feeling her energy leaving her as she did. She looked down to see her weapons and her suit disappearing. She turned around to see Sandy standing, holding her Power Coin. She'd snatched it straight off her belt.

"I might not have mastered all the best fighting moves, but sleight of hand…well…my boyfriend's been helping with that." She said as she closed her hand around the Power Coin. Her energy flared up, before she dropped the pieces to the ground. Kimberly looked to her in horror as she saw her powers destroyed before her eyes.

"BITCH!" Kimberly yelled at her. Sandy just walked up to her, back-handing her to the ground.

"Being a good guy, I should probably be above such things." Sandy commented. "But you know? That actually felt pretty good."

"Guys, it's working, it's really working!" Preston called out as he summoned a dragon, which slammed Billy into the ground, his powers finally fading and disappearing. "We're doing it!"

"Don't count the W just yet!" Hayley responded as she took down Trini, tearing the belt from her uniform, before surging power through it, causing it to explode, destroying her powers. "We're still on the clock."

"Not to mention we've still got the toughest ones to go." Sarah reminded them as she parried Jason's powerful strikes.

"You rookies ain't got nothing on us!" Jason ranted as he hammered into her guard. They locked blades and he tried to drive them back down into Sarah, but she surged back, backed up by the power of the Nexus Prism Star. Jason struggled to hold her back as she unleashed a pulse that knocked him flat on his ass. Calvin and Preston both grabbed him, holding him fast as he struggled, unable to break free. He could only watch as Sarah took his Power Coin, and with it his powers.

"Really? Because from where I'm standing…" She said, before tossing the coin up into the air. She swung her sword, which shattered it in mid-air. Jason screamed as he watched his powers being obliterated. "You just look like a kid who lost his toys."

They all turned to where Levi and Brody were battling against Drakkon. Even on his own he was powerful enough to keep pace with them both. He managed to knock them both down with Saba, before looking around the field, seeing his followers lying on the ground, powerless and defeated. He looked to the team assembling before them, helping Levi and Brody to their feet, and stood firm.

"You...you weak, worthless fools!" He yelled at his own subordinates. "I gave you everything! I gave you the power of Gods, and this is what I get in return?"

"Give it up Drakkon." Brody told him. "We'll go through you if we have to, but if we don't…"

"Do you think I got to where I am by standing down?" He asked. "I am a GOD! I've faced down the Morphing Masters. I've stared into the very Grid itself and triumphed! You fight for a world, a universe of uncertainty, of chaos and conflict instead of order?"

"Order, but at what cost?" Calvin asked him, his hand finding Hayley's and his fingers lacing with hers. "If it's a contest between your order and a world where I have to tell the occasional asshole to go to Hell, I choose this one every time!"

"You're going down Drakkon." Brody told him, the Rangers all powering up. "How you go down is up to you!"

"Like your boy said." Drakkon sneered, pulling out the Dragon Dagger and holding it in his off-hand, while he prepared to attack. "If it's a choice between your world and mine…I choose mine every time!"

"Then I guess we'll just have to see how this ends!" Levi answered, at which everyone yelled and rushed towards each other. There was a huge blast, and a light that flooded the entire city in a blinding flash.

At the Command Centre, Mick peeled himself off the floor, throwing debris off him. The blast was so powerful that buildings suffered damage for several blocks, even the school. He coughed as he struggled to his feet. Redbot lent him a helping hand.

"Mick…the Nexus Prism." Redbot said, pointing to the wall. Mick could only stare at it as it sat inert, unmoving, blackened and charred. It slowly started to crumble and turned to ash on the ground. Mick ran over, picking it up and seeing the ash run through his fingers. "Is it…?"

"Dead." Mick confirmed. "The Nexus Prism is gone."

He could see one of the screens was still active, but the picture was hazy, bright, and unrecognisable. He looked to it in horror as he grabbed his communicator.

"Rangers?" He asked. He didn't get a reply. "Rangers? Brody? Levi? Preston? Anyone?"

He still didn't get an answer. His shoulders slumped and he staggered back away from the monitor, slumping down into a chair. Tears started to well up in his eyes.

"Mick…I…"

"Mick?" A faint signal finally burst through. "Mick? Mick, are you receiving?"

"Brody?" Mick asked hopefully, before going back to the monitor. He saw the picture starting to clear up, before seeing the Rangers stumbling into view, battered, bloody, almost certainly in need of a hospital, but alive. He thanked all the Gods he had stopped praying to many years before in his native tongue, before seizing the microphone. "Brody! You…you…you did it!"

"We did!" Brody corrected him. "The Nexus Prism made its sacrifice, but…it's finally over."

Just then, they all heard something shifting behind them. They all turned to see some debris shifting, before Drakkon stumbled out. He was bleeding heavily, thick, dark, almost black blood. He coughed, and more spilled onto his chin, which he wiped away with his wrist.

"No…"

"…Way." Hayley completed Calvin's thought. Drakkon stumbled, tumbling over some debris, before getting to his feet once more. His suit was gone, and by the looks of things, its protection with it. Quite what was holding Drakkon together, never mind on his feet was anyone's guess! But if his own boasts were to be believed, his own will had kept him alive inside the Grid itself.

"You…you…you took everything!" Drakkon stammered. "The power…it's…it's…"

"Gone!" Brody stated. "And your insane dreams along with it!"

"No, I…I can't…it can't end like this!" Drakkon stated. "I was a God, and now I'm just…nothing?"

"No, you're less than that." Sarah told him, stepping forwards. "You're a murderer, one that has seen more death than anyone combined, and while there's no doubt a whole hell of a lot of people that want a piece of you, my choice? I have a feeling the Prince of Zandar would like to put you on trial."

"On trial?" He asked.

"Yeah, the small matter of his dad?" She reminded him. "We're done with you. They can pick up the pieces."

"You want to put me on trial, like some common…human?" He laughed in pained gasps. "I am Lord Drakkon, the master of…"

"The master of fuck all now!" Levi barked at him. "Now just give it up! It's over!"

Drakkon took a couple of steps forward, which caused them all to pull into a guard, preparing for an attack, before he finally fell to his knees. Brody looked to him, and just sighed.

"We should…gather them up." Brody told them. "No doubt the authorities will be here soon and we want to have them all secured before then."

They started to go around the fallen Rangers, finding things to tie them up with while they awaited someone to come and take them away. They weren't quite sure WHO would take them, but they were sure that someone would be able to secure them.

As Sarah went to reach out to Drakkon to start tying him up, he suddenly grabbed her, snatching her wrist.

"Let…let GO!" She screamed as he rammed something into her gut. She looked down to see a huge, gaping wound in her stomach. Drakkon was holding a sharp piece of metal debris he had secreted in his hand.

Sarah clutched at her stomach, trying to stem the flow of blood as she looked to him. He was preparing to strike at her again, but before he could, Brody had blocked his hand and kicked him away. Drakkon quickly got back to his feet and lunged for Brody, bringing the steel towards him, but in a move none of them saw, he knocked his hand away, before slamming a hand straight into his throat.

Drakkon fell to his knees, his eyes bulging as he struggled to breathe. He looked up at Brody one last time, before falling to the ground and stopped moving. The Rangers all gathered around him.

"Is he…?" Calvin asked. Brody just nodded his head wordlessly as he looked down on him.

"Someone remind me to be thankful Brody went easy on us in practice." Preston commented. Sandy just hit him. Now wasn't the time for jokes.

"He didn't leave you any choice. He was never going to stop." Levi assured him, putting a hand on his shoulder. Brody just nodded.

"I know." He replied.

"You know, not to be a drama queen or anything, but…I really could use a hospital." Sarah told them. With that, they all turned and left. They had done all they could, now they would leave the authorities to pick up the pieces.

The next couple of months were hectic for the city of Summer Cove. Although the Nexus Prism had done its job and delivered the power to save the planet, the blast had damaged a significant portion of the city. A lot of people had to be temporarily re-homed and the students of Summer Cove High had to take their last couple of weeks of classes and their end of year exams in community halls but in the end, by the time it came to the closing weeks of term, the students were back in a brand new school, fully funded by a number of generous donations from some very high profile supporters.

The last of Drakkon's supporters, without powers and cut off from their own dimension were very quickly hunted down and brought to justice. Grace Sterling and Promethea assisted greatly with ensuring that any remaining threats were contained. There was a lot of speculation as to the fact that the Rangers had not been seen since the final battle. Many wondered if they had survived, and while there were more than a few competing ideas how best to honour them, the one thing that was pretty consistent was that the city wanted to immortalise their unknown heroes.

It was graduation day and the students and staff were all starting to gather in the school for what would be the last time for most of them. There were a lot feelings running high as the students and the parents were preparing to watch their kids collect their diplomas and make the next steps onto the next adventures in their lives.

Sarah was by her locker, rummaging through it and cursing loudly as she pulled the last of her things out of the locker and looking for something.

"Stupid Sarah, stupid!" She grumbled. "How is it I can get a 99th percentile in chemistry but I can't remember where I put my stupid…"

A mortar board appeared over her shoulder.

"Looking for this?" A voice behind her asked. She smiled as she stood up and turned around, seeing Victor standing behind her with a smile. "You left it in my car."

"Do you have to say that so loud?" She asked, snatching it from him. "I told my mom and dad I was here helping Mick set up the new paint room."

"You know, a guy that's less secure would be a little hurt by the fact we've been going out for over a month and you've still not told your mom and dad…"

"Just…not yet, OK?" She asked. "We don't want to seem like we're stealing anyone's thunder, the wedding's not that far away and we don't want…you know…people talking about us and not that."

"You know, I just think you're ashamed of me." He said with a little pout. She just looked around, before wrapping her arms around him.

"I'm not ashamed of you. We'll tell people." She assured him. "You know, just…in a little while. Once you've got yourself settled into the Academy and I've been at uni a little while, I'll just invite us around to mom and dad's place."

"I guess that works." He replied as he put the mortarboard on her head. "So, are we joining the others Ms Valedictorian?"

"That sounds good to me." She answered as they parted and headed down the hall together.

In another part of the school, Levi was talking with his dad as they waited for the ceremony to start. Dane was fidgeting a little nervously.

"Will you quit that?" Levi asked him. "Jeez, you're more nervous than some of the kids, and I swear to God I've heard more people vomit in that bathroom than at the rodeo."

"Most of these parents are only watching one of their kids graduate." Dane reminded him. "Are you sure about this career move?"

"What can I say? All the travel? The new city every night? The screaming fans? It all seems rather…samey and boring now." Levi told him with a shrug. "I can still tour in the summer, but I think for now, I want a real challenge, and if there's one thing I know, teaching High School kids is pretty much the toughest challenge I can think of."

"Really?" He asked. "Even tougher than…?"

"Yeah, even tougher than that." Levi replied. Just then, Mrs Finch walked past, giving him a little smile and a nod, before heading past. Levi smiled.

"Not to mention there's other attractions?" His dad asked. Levi just smiled.

"I'd be lying if I said no." He answered. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I should really…"

"Get going!" Dane chuckled as he ran off to join his fellow teachers on the stage.

A little while later, the music had stopped playing and the students were all being called up one by one to receive their diplomas. It was a testament to the teaching staff at Summer Cove High that even with all the trials and hardships Summer Cove had faced that there were a number of pleasant surprises. Calvin got a standing ovation as he crossed the stage, one so raucous that he felt more than a little self-conscious and was noticeably blushing. He'd managed to surpass all his expectations and was delighted to know that he now had a lot of avenues open to him for apprenticeships. Mick insisted that Principal Hastings allow him to present his diploma to him in person.

"Thanks for everything Mick." Calvin said gratefully. "I don't think I could have done it without you."

"That's flattering, but don't ever take away what you did yourself. Your friends, my friends and I could steer you in the right direction here and there but you were the one that was in those exam rooms. You were the one that did it."

"Thanks, I…" Calvin just paused. "Wait…your friends?"

"Oh, I meant to tell you, Joe wanted me to give you this." Mick said, getting a business card out. "He said that if you want to work for him for some extra cash while you get your accreditation, he's more than happy."

"Joe asked you to…" Calvin smiled as the penny dropped with him. "You set me up! You were Joe all along!"

"Well, you're NEARLY right." Mick told him. "Joe's an old buddy from my unit in the Lion Galaxy. I brought him back here after the rebellion. I asked him to do me a favour and he was only too happy to help me, and, as it turns out, you out."

He patted Calvin on the shoulder.

"Oh, and he doesn't really pad the receipts." Mick assured him. "That was all just for show. But the apartment that's not actually up for rent. It's his place."

"You totally set me up! I should have…" Calvin said, before laughing. "Mick, you are one weird as hell teacher, but you really know how to get a lesson across."

With that, Calvin hugged him before heading off the stage. They all went, claiming their diplomas and moving the tassel on their mortarboard to the opposite side to indicate their graduation. Sarah was giddy as she was called up last. Being class Valedictorian, a matter only decided between her, Emma and Monty by virtue of Emma being far too nervous to even consider making a speech and Monty insisting as Student Body President he should step aside, she took up her position at the podium. She looked out at the crowd before her.

"Wow, this is…um…wow." She said as the words she'd memorised just seemed to disappear from her mind. "This is a day that I think…well…I think it's changed meaning a few times for quite a few of us."

She looked out at the crowd, who were now respectfully quiet. She could see her mom and dad in the crowd, staring up at her proudly, willing her on.

"I think for many of us, at the beginning of the year, this was a day that we…kind of took for granted. We all just assumed it would happen. Maybe we were a little nervous as to what our results would be or where we'd end up afterwards but we were all sure we'd end up here and…dare I say, most of us…probably just wished we could get it over with so we could see the back of this place."

There was a laugh from the crowd as she said this.

"Now that we're here, I think…for some of us at least, we're relieved. Some of what we've went through is frankly the kind of thing I don't know if anyone is meant to go through. Some of us maybe started to have doubts if we…if any of us…would even be here to see this day." Sarah said a little sadly. "Some of us…unfortunately aren't."

There was a hush and a respectful nod from the crowd. Although they'd been lucky for the most part, there were casualties along the way. Most at Summer Cove High knew at least someone that hadn't made it. There was a memorial plaque now beside the trophy case which bore the names of people who hadn't made it through the year.

"And now, as we finally got here, some of us, I'm sure, aren't sure if we even want to go on. Some of us wish we didn't have to go." She said, wiping away a tear. "I moved around a lot as a kid, and there's nothing scarier than moving on. You get to know something, you get to know the people and you get comfortable and then it just means that leaving it is difficult. But I know, just as I'm sure it's true for everyone here. No one goes through the shit we did here and leaves it behind them. We will ALL always have Summer Cove, and we will ALL go on to do great things. And we'll do it because of what we went through here. May the Power Protect You!"

The crowd cheered as she accepted her diploma and a hug from Principal Hastings, before joining her family. Principal Hastings took up the podium.

"Well, Sarah, you've really not done me any favours having to follow that up." She said, to a little laugh. "So I'm not even going to try. Today is never about the teachers, or me, it's always about you. Which is why I'm leaving you now with your Student Body President. Monty, come on up!"

Monty got up on stage to a huge applause, nervously taking up the podium.

"Well, thank you for that." He said nervously. "Well, I don't really have too much to say, but since I'm also the head of the Yearbook Committee…I guess it's just time for me to announce the year-end awards. First of all, for Class Clown. Edward Stevens!"

"What? How did that happen?" Emma asked, leaning towards her friends. "Victor and Monty are way funnier than that guy."

"Most likely to win a Nobel Peace Prize, Frances Dunsmuir." Monty read out as another student started to make her way up.

"See, you can never take these things seriously, it's all just a popularity contest!" Hayley commented.

"Most likely to be voted President…"

"See, I'll bet you anything this is…"

"…Hayley Foster!" Monty read aloud. Hayley looked like she was ready to fall out of her chair as she heard this. She needed to be practically thrown onto the stage by her friends just to get her there to accept her award. Monty carried on reading out awards.

"Well, you have to be 35 to run so…I guess Foster for President 2037?" Calvin asked.

"She's got my vote!" Sarah chimed in proudly.

"And finally, the award for cutest couple…." Monty read out.

"Oh, we have got this in the bag." Calvin said with a cheeky little smile.

"I wouldn't be too sure man." Preston said as he put his arm around Sandy. He heard a little cough from behind him, reminding him that Sandy's foster parents were sitting behind him. He just pulled his arm back. He'd met them and the rest of the family, but that didn't mean he wasn't a little restrained with her around them, or that they didn't like to remind him to keep a respectful distance at times in their presence.

"…Victor Vincent and Sarah Thompson!" Monty read out. Both Sarah and Victor were so shocked that they were pretty well dragged onto the stage kicking and screaming as they went, protesting the whole way. The others just laughed at them as they were thrust onto the stage in front of the audience.

"Um…this is…really a little embarrassing." Sarah stammered. "We're um…we're not…um…"

"No, we're really…" Victor said, before grabbing Monty. "This is your doing isn't it?"

"What?" He yelped.

"You stuffed the ballot box or something didn't you?" Victor said accusingly.

"I…I did no such thing!" Monty yelled.

"Well, how else would…"

"DUDE!" One of the students yelled, standing up from the crowd. "We just voted for you!"

"You did?" Sarah asked. "But…why?"

"Oh, come on! It's totally obvious!" He continued. He then turned to the rest of the crowd. "Who else in here knew?"

Sarah and Victor just looked out into the crowd as one by one, they all put up their hands. Even the teachers and the parents. Sarah could see her own mom and dad putting their hands up. She just gulped before looking at Victor.

"Um…"

"I…guess the only people that didn't know was us." He responded.

"YA THINK?" The student called out. Sarah just looked to him and smiled.

"Well, since…apparently…everyone knows?"

"Gladly." Victor answered, taking her in his arms and pulling her in, kissing her passionately as everyone in the school cheered. No one knew what the future held for them, they'd only just made their first steps on the road forward, but the way behind had already been so long that they would never forget. Sarah had come to Summer Cove, suspecting that Kendall had sent her there to get her away from trouble. None of them could have known what would have happened, but the one thing that was certain was that now, the future was bright, and it was theirs for the taking.

Fin.

**A/N: **Well, there it is. Bidding a fond farewell to the Ninja Steel team. It's been a long time, at times, occasionally a little rocky, but it was fun getting there.

It's also time for another ending, and that is the end of this universe. It's been something I've been considering for a while, but with Beast Morphers, I've decided to start with an entirely new slate. As such, Beast Morphers will not be a follow-on to this series, but the beginning of a whole new one in a brand new universe I'm intending to craft for it.

Thank you to all my regular readers and reviewers, I'm glad you've enjoyed so much of my work, and I really hope to see you with the beginning of my Beast Morphers series very soon.


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